Dragon's Rebirth
by Fresh Prince of Konoha
Summary: As a child, Naruto unlocks a power thought to be gone to the universe. Now, as an adolescent and the last known Saiyan, Naruto must balance his wide variety of powers, his Shinobi life, a crazy, demented Uchiha with a power that is as strong or stronger than his own, and a plethora of new enemies that would love nothing more than to skewer him. DBZ X-over
1. Pilot

Well, here it is. The re-write of Return of the Dragon. The original one is still up, but I decided to make a re-write because I found some problems in the first one. I want to thank Adlex47Ligar0, Dragoon-zerox, and D-reaper X-20 for helping me with this story. If not for them, I don't know what I'd do. Also, for those of you who like harems, thank D-reaper X-20. I've decided to make this a harem. I'm chancing it by making it a bigger harem than Naruto Ignited. The harem will be Hinata, Temari, Tenten, and Fem. Haku. Sakura will be a bitch, and I don't know about Ino yet.

And for those of you who wonder how hard it is to write a DBZ/Naruto X-over. Think about this. The characters of DBZ at their weakest(Raditz) can move faster than a shotgun bullet and let it hit them and not feel a thing. They also grow a helluva lot stronger. Some(like Kid Goku) can take a bullet shot to the forehead and only feel a stinging pain for a while. For some, bullets don't affect them at all. Imagine blending a power like that with the characters of Naruto. It's very hard and I have to downplay a lot of DBZ's power which I really didn't want to do. So bear with me on these.

Anyway, onto the story.

**________________________________________________________________**

(Flashback-April-6 years before Valley of the End)

A six year old Naruto was training. He was going over the Clone Jutsu that was taught to him by his academy sensei Iruka. Try as hard as he could, Naruto couldn't get the damn jutsu down. He tried and tried, but it didn't work. You'd think he could do this by his record.

Ever since he could remember, Naruto was always a strong little boy. One time a man was trapped under a merchant kart. No one around could get it off. The people around were about to ask a ninja for help, before Naruto just came over and **threw** the kart. **With one hand. **There were 5 men trying together to get the kart off the man, yet Naruto did it easily with one hand.

He was also very energetic. He did pranks to improve his energy and stealth. But when he gets caught, he leads Chunnin and some Jounnin on chases all around the city, to where the **Ninja **call it quits. Where most of the other kids in his class could only take two laps(½ mile) nonstop around the school field before taking a break, Naruto could take it to lengths that no one ever expected him to and go up to 6 laps (1 ½ miles) before taking a break.

They also tested him to see how much chakra he had. They had him flare out all of his chakra at once in a continuous aura. When Naruto tried it, his aura reached levels that some Jounnin couldn't match. He could soak up knowledge like a sponge does to water. He read his Ninja Academy: Year 1 book 3 times in 3 months and he could answer questions that some kids in their second year couldn't answer. Of course, the teachers gave him questions on things that they hadn't studied yet, but Naruto still answered them correctly, frequently leaving the teachers speechless.

He also learned that Genjutsu were dispelled when he flared out his chakra. After a few days of trying, he mastered that move. He flared chakra out of a small part of his body frequently to dispel any Genjutsu. He used it as a chakra exercise. He even found out that some of his tests had Genjutsu on them, but didn't pay any mind to it.

Naruto also had tough skin. He had skin that could easily take a stabbing from a kunai, yet he didn't feel anything from it but a small twinge of pain. A guy in the village once threw a kunai at Naruto's arm. Naruto didn't sense it or anything and it hit him. The kunai fell with the top part of it bent. All Naruto did was feel a small pain, but it went away a few minutes later.

He also found out a new way to use chakra. Well, it wasn't chakra, but it was something else entirely. Ever since he started using chakra, Naruto felt that there was something _different _about it than his body expected. He never found out what that was, until he was attacked. Some people got together and tried to kill him. Naruto tried to run, but took a dead end and was beaten up. The attacks didn't hurt as much as they usually did, but Naruto was still scared. He looked around, but only saw the hateful glares of the people. Naruto panicked, and his instincts took over. He let out some sort of attack that hit everyone and had them running away.

After trying to find it for 2 months, Naruto finally found it. It was the energy that his body was craving for. It was the Spiritual Energy of chakra(Spiritual Energy in Chakra is built up by exercising, so I picked that). After testing it, Naruto found he could manipulate it in any shape or form. It felt right using that type of energy. He could make a blade, a ball, a grenade, it was only limited to his imagination.

But despite all of these achievements, he couldn't control chakra. He couldn't control it enough to do one simple Jutsu. Now here he was, slaving away at trying to do the Clone Jutsu, but couldn't get it done.

Naruto tried it again, but still couldn't get it right. Naruto fell into an uncontrollable rage. He tried so hard, yet he couldn't do this one simple fucking jutsu. Naruto fell to his knees and put his hands on his head. He leaned forward, then threw back his head in a primal roar. Somehow, that scream combined with his rage shocked something deep within him. He suddenly felt power. And a helluva lot of it. It surrounded him completely. It took the form of a yellow firey aura. Naruto felt his hair stand up. The changes to him were enough to shock him out of his rage state, and bring him back to earth.

Naruto couldn't explain it, but he could feel the power in him. It was like something far, far away was now in front of him. He felt the power, and it felt damn good. Once Naruto got control of himself, he knew that this wasn't the end. He could feel it. He knew that this power was something that would change his entire life. He also had to hide it.

He had a sixth sense for danger. He knew when someone dangerous to him was watching him. Call it precognition, but he felt the Uchiha boy in his class look at him. The kid frequently stared daggers into the back of Naruto's head. Naruto never paid it any mind, but he could feel the danger behind that stare. The feeling was like listening to a serial killer laughing as he broke out of prison or something.

Naruto couldn't explain it, but he felt the power leave all of a sudden. He felt his hair go down and saw the aura disappear. He also saw black at the edges of his vision. The black completely took over his vision and Naruto fell unconscious.

**________________________________________________________________**

(Fast Forward-September-6 years before the Valley of the End)

After 5 months of trying, Naruto was going to re-attempt it. He fell unconscious many, many times trying, but he finally succeeded once. After finding out that it was because of his rage that he was able to reach that, Naruto tried to reach it again. After several failures, he did it. When he did, he felt the power increase and thought of increasing his Spiritual Energy. After months of training, Naruto was about to try it again. He tried it after every week of training, but it didn't do any good. He could never activate it.

Now he was about to try it again. Naruto flared his aura like they told him to, gaining power, pushing his max. Naruto increased his power higher and higher, never stopping. After a while, he felt a barrier. Like a literal top on his power. Naruto focused his power harder and harder, knowing that barrier stood inbetween him and that transformation. Naruto forced his power, until he could literally feel that barrier breaking. When it broke completely, the power rushed him again.

This time Naruto was by a river, so when the transformation happened, he rushed over to see what it was. He looked at his reflection to see a completely different person looking at him. The person in the water had blonde hair sticking up in odd places. He had greenish-blue eyes. The person had more muscles than Naruto ever had. There was also a firey yellow aura around him. He thought that he was dreaming, until he punched himself. He looked at the water and thought _'That's me. I look completely different. This is unreal.' _After checking himself out more, Naruto walked away from the river and into town. After awhile the aura died off, but the changes stayed the same. And when he went into town, no one noticed him. His hair and eyes were usually jet black. Now that the colors were different, he was unrecognizable, except for the whisker marks.

Naruto headed across town to the forest on top of the Hokage Monument. After getting there, Naruto tried to control the transformation. He found that with great difficulty he could barely control it. Naruto decided to train more. With training, he was able to transform without being angry. Maybe training will allow him to transform without so much strain. It's just like a cool Jutsu. You want to launch it as fast as possible and it took him 10 minutes of concentration to transform and 5 to get out of it without passing out. He needed to get the transformation faster.

**________________________________________________________________**

(Fast Forward-December 27th-6 years before the Valley of the End)

3 months later, Naruto could control the technique. It took 3 months of hard work, and he even had to skip school sometimes, but he was able to control the transformation. Now all he had to do was concentrate, and in a few seconds, the technique did it's work, turning him to Super Naruto. This technique had also helped him with his chakra. He found that not only increased his Spiritual Energy, but his Physical Energy too. Somehow, it forced the cells in his body to give a whole lot more energy up. Naruto's chakra supplies increased dramatically. And now he could control that power.

Naruto was out getting himself a soda and some ice cream with the Hokage. He told the Hokage everything about the ability. To say that the Hokage was shocked was an understatement. He couldn't lift his jaw off the ground for 10 minutes. He told Naruto that the technique was very dangerous and that he shouldn't tell anyone about it. Naruto already guessed that the Hokage would tell him that, but the Hokage was like a grandfather to him, and for some reason he couldn't keep secrets from him.

Anyway, they were eating ice cream when some guy came in. He looked like a ninja, but from the sign on his headband, it was easy to tell that he wasn't from Konoha. His headband had clouds on it, signaling that he was from Kumogakure no Sato, the Village Hidden in the Clouds. He had a beard and a confident smirk on his face. The man came up to the Hokage and said "Hello today, Hokage-sama. How are you?"

Sarutobi put on a smile and said "Great. I was just on my way to that meeting. It starts in 10 minutes anyway. Naruto, it's getting late, you better get on home."

Naruto said "alright old man" and got up. He started walking out of the ice cream parlor, but stopped. He felt a bad vibe from somewhere. After looking around, he found it coming from the Cloud guy. The guy was roped up in a chat with the Hokage, so he didn't see Naruto looking at him. After a few years, Naruto learned to trust his vibes. They got him out of a lot of beatings. Although they probably wouldn't hurt, Naruto knew that it was still bad to be on the receiving end of a beating. So he learned to trust his senses. Naruto decided to trail that guy for the rest of the day.

**________________________________________________________________**

(Night-same day)

The man went to his hotel room, not aware of Naruto following him. Naruto was following him from the rooftops, a much easier way to stay on someone. Naruto saw the guy go into his hotel room, and then someone leaped out of his window and left the building. Naruto didn't need to look into the room to see that the Cloud guy had gone. Naruto trailed the guy to the Hyuuga estate. The estate wasn't guarded that day for some reason. Anyway, the guy was easily able to sneak into a room and take something. Naruto thought it was jewelry or something, but when he saw the bag move and someone whine, he knew that someone was in the bag.

Naruto knew that he had to stop this guy. He felt something in him awake, and it completely took over. He jumped out of the trees he was hiding in to come in front of the guy. Naruto said "Stop. Let that person go. NOW!"

The guy laughed. He said "So some little kid thinks that he can play the hero, huh? Well then, I'll show you what happens to fools like you who try to play the hero!"

The guy charged Naruto. He was fast, but he didn't put up a defense. He thought Naruto was some regular 7-year old kid. What he didn't expect was for Naruto to be fast also. Naruto was able to get a hit off on the guy's chest, making him drop the person in the bag. When the bag dropped, Naruto grabbed it and ran. He ran into the forest at a surprising pace, but the Cloud Guy was able to keep up, barely. Naruto stopped at a clearing. He pulled the bag off and there was a girl. She had on pajamas and had midnight blue hair. Her eyes were violet(or whatever the Hyuuga eye color is). She had on a small blush. She said "N-N-Naruto-kun! What happened?" The little girl was Hinata Hyuuga, one of Naruto's classmates. She was a little shy, but she made friends easily. She also had a crush on Naruto, but Naruto didn't know that.

Naruto said "Some guy from Cloud Village tried to kidnap you. He's coming. Hinata, I'll hold him off."

Hinata became frantic. She heard from her dad that the Cloud Village sent over their head Jounnin to sign a peace treaty with the village. The Head Jounnin wasn't someone to mess with and she guessed that he could keep up with some of the best. She couldn't let Naruto go out there and be killed. She said "Naruto-kun, you can't-"

Naruto cut her off. He turned around to a part of the forest, saying "Hey, don't tell me what I can't do. We'll both be fine. I give you my word. And I never go back on my word. That's my nindo. My ninja way. I promise you won't get hurt. Now sit back and watch me show this guy what happens when he messes with my friends."

Hinata blushed a little when she heard Naruto call her his friend. Hinata couldn't explain it, but Naruto's words soothed her. She calmed down and backed away. 2 seconds later, the Head Jounnin from Cloud came out of the woods. He said "You won't survive Round 2 kid!" and charged Naruto, this time taking Naruto seriously.

Naruto said "No, you won't survive this!" Naruto then focused his power, easily activating his transformation. When he transformed, he let his power flare out. The power caused some changes in the landscape. The ground around him started crumbling. Small pebbles started raising up and being destroyed in mid-air. Hinata looked at Naruto and said "Naruto, w-w-what happened to you?"

Naruto said "This is my new technique I made up. It changes my hair yellow, and makes me a whole lot stronger. With this move I can beat this fool."

Naruto looked at the Cloud Jounnin and said "Alright. Now, let's go."

Naruto then shot at the guy. One second Naruto was in front of the guy, and in a blink he had his right fist embedded in the guy's chest. The guy's eyes came out of his eye sockets and swelled to the size of dinner plates. Naruto then turned around and kicked the guy with the sole of his left foot.. The guy drifted 10 feet back before landing. The guy got up quickly, saying "This time I'm not going easy on you. Now DIE!" The guy started charging Naruto with a sword out in his right hand.

Naruto yelled "Spirit Sword Jutsu!". Naruto held his left arm out with his fingers extended and his thumb tucked into his palm. He focused ki energy into his hand, and a yellow mass of energy came out. The energy came out of his wrist and went for three feet growing into a point. The man stopped running and looked on in shock and thought to himself _'Who is this kid?'_

Hinata looked amazed as Naruto turned to her and said "Surprised? I call this my Spirit Sword Jutsu. It creates a glowing yellow sword in place of my hand. Now I don't need a weapon."

The Cloud Jounnin said "No matter. I can easily kill you, little boy." The man continued his dash at Naruto and tried a vertical slash at Naruto. Naruto brought the sword up to block the strike. Sparks flashed as the guy pulled his sword back and tried to attack Naruto again with a diagonal strike. Then a horizontal. The man kept attacking, never letting up for even a second. Naruto didn't let the guy gain any ground. He met all of the guys strikes with a block or parry.

While the Cloud Jounnin was busy striking Naruto, Naruto created another smaller blade on his right arm. When he blocked another vertical strike from the guy, he brought his other blade around, growing it in size. The blade then cut through the guy's sword like a hot knife through butter.

The guy was momentarily shocked at the fact that his sword was destroyed. Naruto took advantage of the opportunity, stopped his Spirit Sword Jutsu, and punched the guy in his chest. The Cloud Jounnin was knocked away by the hit. Naruto started charging energy into his left hand. When the attack charged completely, Naruto let it go, yelling "Silent Grenade Jutsu!"

The attack was small, but it traveled fast. The Cloud Jounnin had no chance. The attack hit him, but it didn't go off. It just hit him, and it didn't seem to faze him. The guy got up, charging Naruto again. He started doing handseals, yelling out "Lightning Style: Lightning Bolt Jutsu!" From the skies, a yellow bolt of lightning came down at Naruto. Naruto jumped back, barely avoiding the blast. When he landed, the Jounnin was gone. Naruto looked around for him, but it was too late. He didn't know what was coming, until he heard Hinata yell "Naruto-kun, watch out!"

Naruto looked around, but was too slow as a lightning attack hit him right in the face. He was knocked away by the blast, but was able to land on his feet. He looked around, but was shot again. He kept looking around for the Jounnin, but every time he thought he found him, he was blasted. After 12 blasts, the guy came out, saying "You survived 12 blasts of my Lightning Bolt Jutsu. That's impressive, kid. Maybe I'll take you and the girl to Cloud with me. Then we'll use you both to breed the ultimate ninja and take over the Elemental Countries

The man then started doing handseals. He then ended, saying "It was a good fight kid, but now you're-"

He was cut off as Hinata rushed forward, attacking the man. She jumped up and hit him with a Gentle Fist strike in the back. He man yelled in pain, then kneeled forward on one foot. He turned around and said "Stupid bitch." and smacked Hinata. Hinata grunted out in pain, then fell back. The man said "I'll deal with you later bitch."

The man turned around, saying "Now where were we?" He turned around to see that Naruto was standing up. The guy started doing handseals, yelling out "Lightning Style: False Darkness Jutsu!" The clouds bunched up together. And out of them, came a huge beast of lightning. The beast roared and dashed forward for Naruto. Naruto just stood there, not doing anything. The beast then crashed into Naruto. There was a huge explosion, giving Hinata the idea that Naruto was dead. She started crying out of the blue, thinking that her friend and crush was dead.

The Cloud Jounnin started laughing. He said "Who did you say wouldn't survive this battle kid. Too bad. Your abilities could've been good to Cloud. Too-What the hell?" The guy was interrupted as the smoke from the attack unexpectedly blew away. Standing there was Naruto, with tore clothes and bleeding wounds. Naruto looked at the guy, and in his eyes was murder. The glare was so evil, it would've made Orochimaru piss his pants.

Naruto said "I was gonna leave you to the Hokage to decide what to do with you, but now I won't. For hurting Hinata-chan, your death will be HERE AND NOW!"

Naruto shot at the guy, making a crater where he was at. The Cloud Jounnin started doing handseals, but was interrupted when Naruto appeared in his face out of nowhere. Naruto buried his fist in the man's face, blasting him backwards. The man was about to land, but Naruto interrupted him. Naruto appeared behind him and kicked him to the left. Naruto disappeared again and appeared behind the guy. He kicked him to the left again and disappeared. He kept that pattern up until the guy landed. The guy had broken hands, legs, arms, and a cracked rib.

The guy steadily got up, wincing in pain. He was on his knees and hands, and when he looked up, there was Naruto with a Spirit Sword in his face. The guy said "Please. I was only acting on orders from the Raikage. Please have mercy on me."

Naruto narrowed his eyes more then they were and yelled "Mercy? You want me to show you mercy! You kidnapped Hinata from her home for your village. You tried to kill me. You were about to kidnap me too. Just for your village! TELL ME WHY? WHY THE HELL SHOULD I SHOW YOU MERCY AFTER THAT, HUH!? WHY SHOULDN'T I JUST KILL YOU RIGHT HERE!?"

The Jounnin was whimpering, and was about to say something, when Naruto interrupted him. Naruto dropped out of his transformation, dropping the Sprit Sword. He said "Luckily for you, that's not my decision to make." Naruto then looked somewhere behind him. The Jounnin turned around to see the Hokage and Hiashi Hyuuga standing there.

The Hokage said "Good job, Naruto. Not only did you save Hinata, but you stopped this Jounnin from taking her to Kumogakure. As for this guy, I'll take him to the Interrogation Room for questioning. Naruto, how did you get here?"

Naruto said "I felt a bad vibe from this guy. I trust my vibes, so I followed him all day. I followed him to his apartment where he changed clothes and headed toward the Hyuuga Estate. For some reason, the security was down. I found him trying to steal Hinata-chan and I had to stop him."

Hiashi Hyuuga came forward, saying "Naruto-san, what you did today was heroic. Not only did you save my daughter, but you stopped the village from signing a peace contract with an enemy in disguise that would've killed us all. I can't thank you enough."

Naruto said "You don't have to thank me. I did this because I wanted to save Hinata-chan."

Hiashi said "Regardless of why you did it, you saved my daughter. I thank you."

Naruto said "No problem."

The next day, the Head Jounnin of Cloud was about to be taken away to jail. The Raikage demanded the Head Jounnin back, but that was put to a stop when the Jounnin made a public announcement to the citizens of Konoha about his secret mission at the village. A copy of what he said when he was interrogated was sent to the Daimyo of Fire Country and the Daimyo of Lightning Country. When the Raikage tried to declare war, the Daimyo of Lightning Country immediately denied the option, saying that if they did go to war, then he would cut ALL funds to Kumogakure. The Raikage then quickly lost interest in starting a war. When Hinata mentioned that Naruto did a move called the Silent Grenade, Naruto told the Hokage what it did. Basically, the attack buried itself in a body. The attack would take the bloodstream to the heart, where by command of the person who made the move, it would swell up and grow, destroying the attacker from the inside out.(The probe would only last for 3 days)

When Naruto told the Hokage of that move, the Hokage decided to take the Raikage up on his offer and send the Head Cloud Jounnin back to Kumogakure. He traveled with 6 ANBU, one of them a Shadow Clone of the Hokage in disguise. When the Head Jounnin was delivered to Kumogakure, the ANBU immediately left, the clone dispelling. When the Hokage got the Clone's knowledge, he had Naruto activate that technique. The Head Jounnin was blown up, right in front of the Raikage.

Naruto told Hinata not to tell anyone. If word got out that he could beat the Head Jounnin of Cloud, it might infuriate some people. Hinata understood and kept her mouth closed. Since that day, her dad made sure she spent a lot of time with Naruto, knowing she was safe with him.

**________________________________________________________________**

(Fast Forward-Konoha Ninja Academy-1 year before Valley of the End)

Since Naruto saved Hinata, him and her had hit it off well. They were best friends. They were always seen together. They played together, they trained together, they ate together. If they didn't deny it every time someone said it, people would think they were dating. But the two did love each other. They just didn't know how to express it.

Naruto taught Hinata some of his special Spiritual Based attacks. She took a while longer to learn than he did, but she was easily able to do it. She even created some of her own attacks. They were always coming up with new ways to use Spiritual Energy.

Today Naruto and Hinata came to school early and sat down in their seats next to each other, Hinata by the window and Naruto next to her. Things were peaceful, until the door opened. A kid with jet black hair and black eyes said "Dobe, fight me, now."

Naruto looked over to the door to see Sasuke Uchiha, his most hated rival. Ever since he first came there, he was hated by Sasuke for having black hair and eyes 'like an Uchiha'. They were always at each other's throats and were always fighting.

Naruto sighed and said "Didn't you learn anything from the last, what's the record, 50 times I whooped your ass?"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Naruto and said "That's just luck. Lightning doesn't strike twice."

Naruto smirked and said "You're right. It strikes 50 times, from my count."

Sasuke glared at Naruto harder, and said "What Dobe, scared?"

Naruto said "Of who, you? No, I just don't wanna dirty my hands messing with you. You're a small fry in comparison to me."

Sasuke exploded with anger and said "What did you say?"

Naruto said "You heard me. You will never beat me Sasuke. I'm too strong for you."

Sasuke said "You talk a lot of trash. Let's see if you can back it up. After school. The field. I'll show you once and for all who's the best."

Naruto said "I'll be there. And I'll make sure to reserve you a room in the hospital."

Needless to say, word spread around quickly. The rivalry between Sasuke and Naruto was the talk of the Academy. Soon, everyone knew of the fight. Even some people not in school. When school got out, all of the kids who went to the school and their parents were crowded around, waiting to see the fight.

At the field outside the academy, Sasuke was standing alone, surrounded by people, waiting to see him defeat Naruto. Somehow, four very special people heard about the match and were there to see it. The first was Danzo, the old war hawk of Konoha. He secretly lead a secret police force called Root that didn't answer to the hokage. The second and third were Homura and Koharu, the Village Elders. They served on the Konoha Council and were there to see how the Uchiha would crush the demon that plagued their village for 12 years. The last person was Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Sandaime Hokage. The Hokage was there to make sure that after this match, no one tried to hurt Naruto. He also wanted to see how strong the two top academy students were.

Sasuke said "It's after school, and Naruto didn't show. I guess that shows how cowardly he is. He didn't even show up." The crowd cheered at that.

They were cheering Sasuke on, until a voice called out "Look above you, dumbass."

Sasuke looked up where he heard the voice coming from, and saw Naruto there. Naruto was sitting on a branch looking at Sasuke with a bored expression. He said "I been sitting here for 5 minutes. I was waiting to see if you could find me here. I guess you couldn't."

Naruto leaned back on the branch, falling off and flipping through the air. When he landed, he landed 2 feet in front of Sasuke. Naruto said "Okay. You challenged me to a fight Sasuke. I accepted. It that true?"

Sasuke said "Yea. So what if it is?"

Naruto took a quick look over at Homura and Koharu. He said "Just clarifying for anyone wanting to pin your injuries on me. Now let's go."

Sasuke said "Gladly."

Naruto jumped at Sasuke, wanting to end this quickly. He twisted in midair and let his left foot out for a kick. His foot connected with Sasuke's face, knocking him back. Naruto landed and said "Come on, Sasuke. You have to do better than that if you want this battle to last more than 30 seconds."

Sasuke said "I intend to."

Naruto charged Sasuke, a blur to regular villagers eyes. Sasuke saw Naruto coming and dodged the right fist aimed for his head. Sasuke brought his right fist up into an uppercut, hitting Naruto's chin. He then sent his left foot out in a front kick to Naruto's stomach. Naruto staggered back from the pain.

He thought to himself _'He usually didn't see hits like those coming. What happened to him?'_

Sasuke smirked. He said "I bet you're wondering how I can see your attacks. Easy, look into my eyes."

Naruto looked at Sasuke's eyes and saw something that he didn't expect. _'He has the Sharingan. He must've got it from the last time we fought.'_

Naruto said "I see you unlocked the Crutch Sharingan."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Naruto and said "What?"

Naruto said "The Crutch Sharingan. That's your bloodline. The Sharingan is nothing but a crutch, used by the Uchiha Family. It activates when their life is in danger. It never comes from training. The Sharingan comes when your own power can't save your ass. That's what's wrong with all bloodlines these days. They're all used as crutches. And when your crutch is beaten, you fall down."

Sasuke glared daggers at Naruto and said "The Uchiha Clan is the supreme clan in Konoha. We are the best. We have the best bloodline in the world. The Uchiha are the strongest."

Naruto smirked and said "If that's true, why isn't Konoha a monarchy with the Uchiha as the ruling family? That's what Madara Uchiha wanted. But he couldn't get his way 'cause he was defeated by Hashirama Senju, the First Hokage. Look at your dad. He was a candidate for the Yondaime Hokage, but he lost to Minato Namikaze.

"Face it, Sasuke. Your clan was never up top! They were always three steps behind the Senju Clan. It was the Senju who built Konoha! The Nidaime gave us the rivers we use as our water supply and the Shodaime gave us the trees we use as cover to hide our village. They taught the Sandaime Hokage. He taught the Sannin. One of the Sannin taught the Yondaime. And under the rule of the Senju, our village has peace with other Great Hidden Villages, and scared the rest into a ceasefire.

"The Shodaime was able to control wood. He was also able to tame the Biju. He sent each Biju to a Great Elemental Country so there would be less violence between the Hidden Villages. The Nidaime was able to control water to where he could use the water molecules in the air. The Uchiha practically worship fire, yet none of you have been able to control fire like the Nidaime controlled water. All the Uchiha have is a tampered-with version of the Byakugan and can control the Kyuubi. But since the Yondaime killed him, your clan doesn't even have that going for them.

"And it took only one ANBU captain to kill all of your clan in one night. Face it Sasuke, your clan is an embarrassment to this village and was never up top!"

Sasuke looked shocked at Naruto's statements. He worshipped his clan all of his life. HE dedicated himself to his clan, and yet, here was this no-clan orphaned loser dragging his clan name into the ground. Sasuke looked at Naruto and said in a lower voice"I'll kill you."

Naruto glared at Sasuke and said "Try it. You use deadly force against me, and I'll kill you where you stand, weakling."

When Naruto called Sasuke a weakling, Sasuke's body started changing. His muscle mass increased by a lot. His hair started changing shape, and turning blue. He also started getting a yellow aura around him. When it ended, Sasuke looked completely different. He didn't know what happened to him, but he liked it.

Naruto looked at Sasuke's new form and realized that this was bad. This was like his technique, but different too. The amount of muscle mass was more than his. His hair turned blue, but his eyes were still in their Sharingan form.

When Sasuke turned into that muscle-bound fighter, Naruto felt something rise in him. It was a feeling like fear, but different. It was telling him to either run or go all out on Sasuke. Naruto couldn't explain it, so he didn't listen to it.

Sasuke disappeared. Naruto looked around, but didn't see Sasuke anywhere. Sasuke then appeared in his face, punching him in his gut. Naruto immediately drifted back, going through the crowd and hitting a tree. Naruto looked up to see Sasuke smirking at him.

Naruto said "You don't got nothing to be smiling about, Sasuke. I'm tired of holding back on you."

Naruto stood up and clenched his fists to his side. He concentrated his power, letting out a primal yell.

The effects were immediate. Naruto's hair stuck up. His hair turned golden and his eyes changed color. His muscles also got bigger. Naruto said "Let's go, Sasuke."

Immediately both disappeared. After a few seconds, a shockwave was heard in the air. Tit felt like two hulking things smashing together. The shockwave even blew a few people back. Where the shockwave originated from, the two dueling ninjas reappeared. When they reappeared, Naruto had his fist in Sasuke's face. Sasuke leaned back from the hit, and flipped backwards, letting his foot out, kicking Naruto in the chin. Naruto went flying back and landed on the ground.

Naruto got up quickly, dashing at Sasuke. Sasuke charged at Naruto, and let out a punch. Naruto ducked under the punch and focused energy into his fists. Naruto then yelled out "Spirit Tags!"

He then started attacking Sasuke at lighting fast speeds. With this Sharingan still on, Sasuke was able to block half of the attacks. But a few got through. Without warning, Naruto backed away. He jumped far away from Sasuke and landed. He said "Spirit Tags, Ignite!"

For a second, nothing happened. But then, Sasuke started glowing. He looked at his body to see that the glow was coming mostly from his arms, but there were some spots on his chest that were glowing also. Suddenly, the glowing spots exploded.

When the smoke cleared, Sasuke was still standing. His clothes were partially ripped now. His shirt was blown to small scraps that still hung on him. His pants had rips in them too. But other than that, Sasuke was okay.

Naruto said "It seems you're stronger than I thought."

Sasuke charged Naruto, screaming all the way. Naruto dodged the left punch Sasuke opened up with, and jumped back when Sasuke tried to knee him in his gut. While he was still in the air, Naruto charged energy into his hands and shot off 6 balls of energy. The attacks collided with Sasuke and he was encased in smoke.

Naruto put his hands in front of his chest and charged energy into them. The energy created a red ball of energy in front of his chest. Naruto then thrusted his hands forward, yelling out "Destruction Wave!"

The red attack sailed through the sky, hitting Sasuke off-guard. Sasuke flew back at the attack, making a crater in the ground. He was bleeding from his chest where the attack hit him and was bleeding from his lip. He got up, still in a psychotic state of rage. He yelled at the top of his lungs like a madman "I'll kill you!"

Sasuke charged Naruto again. It was at that point Naruto realized something. _'His transformation is like my move. The problem with his is that it makes him more powerful, but decreases his speed. My transformation makes it so all attributes are increased equally. That move increases his power a lot, but it doesn't do much for speed. That's where I gotta own him.'_

Naruto waited until Sasuke was right on him, then disappeared. Sasuke looked around for Naruto but couldn't find him. He heard a voice say "Hey dumbass, look behind you."

Sasuke turned around to see Naruto holding another ball of energy inbetween both of his hands by his right hip. Except this one was green. Naruto said "Say hello, to Super Naruto's Konoha Cannon!"

Naruto then turned his body, thrusting the attack forward with great force. The attack sailed through the air, straight towards Sasuke. The attack hit him full force. Sasuke was blown back. Through the smoke, you couldn't see Sasuke. But then immediately the smoke blew away. Sasuke was still standing there, with a few bruises. He charged Naruto again, but Naruto dodged his punch. But Naruto didn't dodge the head butt that came his way. Naruto was blown back from the attack.

Naruto got up, thinking _'Damn, that attack was strong. I can't let him hit me again like that. If I do, I'm finished.'_

Naruto rushed Sasuke, with speeds only the experienced ninja could follow. He rushed Sasuke, but Sasuke dodged his punch. Naruto then started attacking at a fast pace, making Sasuke strain to keep up with him. Naruto jumped back in the air, letting out ki blasts all the way. Sasuke dodged them, but Naruto was gone. He turned around, only for his face to meet a boot. Sasuke was sent back by the sheer force behind the attack.

Naruto charged energy into his left hand while Sasuke was still in mid-air. The energy grew out into a blade of energy. Naruto used his right hand to charge energy in. The ball of energy was black. Naruto thrusted his right hand forward, yelling out "Spirit Shot!"

The attack shot off and hit Sasuke while he was still in the air. Naruto then shot forward with the Spirit Sword and cut Sasuke all over his body. Sasuke was on all fours, kneeling in pain. Naruto then held the sword tip at Sasuke's head. He said "Give up now Sasuke, or I'll extend this blade through your brain."

Sasuke glared at Naruto and said "Fuck you."

Naruto glared back and said "Wrong answer."

Naruto then lifted his right foot up, kicking Sasuke right in the face. Naruto then charged up energy in his right hand again, but this energy was 10X what he usually charges an attack with. He yelled out "Spirit Shot 10X!" and hit Sasuke with the attack at point blank range.

The attack exploded and when it cleared, Sasuke was back to normal, knocked out. Naruto was standing there with singed clothes. He said "And another one bites the dust."

Maki Haruno, Sakura Haruno's mother came forward. She took Naruto's arm and put a kunai to his neck. She said "As a member of the Konoha Council, I am putting you under arrest for assaulting Sasuke Uchiha."

Naruto didn't budge. He grabbed the woman's arm and tightened his hand. He focused Spiritual Energy into his hand, tightening his grip. After a few seconds, a sickening snap broke through the air. People watching realized that Maki's arm was broken.

Naruto said "Wrong. At the beginning I asked Sasuke and he admitted to asking for this match. That means that he knew what would happen, yet he went forward with it. I can't be blamed for this. As for you, with that kunai to my neck, you pushed it closer to my neck to where it would regularly draw blood. In the eyes of the judicial system of Konoha, that's assault. I have the right to kill you, but I won't do it." Naruto then dragged her by her broken arm, with her screaming all the way. He pulled her by her arm and threw her outside the ring. Naruto nodded to the Hokage briefly, the hokage nodding back.

Naruto then walked away, to the yells and screams of the people. Naruto paid them no mind. He walked away and dropped his transformation, only to run into Hinata again. They both started walking down the street together. She said "You know you're gonna get hell for that."

Naruto said "I don't care. They can write it down, publish it in the newspaper, I don't give a fuck."

Hinata leaned in and said "You know that one-armed one-eyed guy at the match?" At Naruto's nod she continued. "That man is named Danzo. Word is, he runs an underground military force called Root."

Naruto said "So. I don't care."

Hinata said "My father also told me that at every Council Meeting he asks to take custody of you, but when someone else wants custody of you, he's the first to reject it."

Naruto said "So what's he want with me?"

Hinata said "My father said that he might know of your ability to transform."

Naruto scoffed and said "Well, he certainly knows now."

Hinata said "Well, I don't think he'll ask for you anymore. He might ask Sasuke."

Naruto got a serious look on his face and said "You think he wants Sasuke to perfect that transformation."

Hinata said "Yeah. He also wants to go to war with every country. He's war-crazy and with Sasuke's transformation in his pocket, he'll certainly win. But he'll need a place to launch that worldwide attack from. A base. And the closest place would be-"

Naruto's eyes widened and said "Konoha."

Hinata said "Right. He might try to take over Konoha. If he has Sasuke's transformation with him, he might just take over."

Naruto said "No he won't. I won't let something like that happen. Even if I have to kill, I won't let someone like Danzo take over Konoha."

Hinata said "I know. And so does Danzo. He might try to get you too. With both of you, his chances of winning will be higher."

Naruto said "Don't worry, Hinata-chan. I'll watch my back."

Hinata said "But I'm worried about you."

Naruto said "You don't have to be. I can handle that one-armed freak easily."

Hinata said "But you better watch out for Danzo. He's a sneaky bastard and he'll play every cheap trick he can to get what he wants."

**_______________________________________________________________**

(2 weeks later)

Naruto had just walked out of the academy with his headband. He had graduated and was a genin. To Naruto, the test was **incredibly **easy. He finished with the highest scores in the class.

While he was walking out, he heard a voice call out to him. He looked over to where the sound came from to see Mizuki standing there. He was the assistant teacher and was always someone Naruto's instincts deemed hazardous. Naruto always listened to his instincts since they saved his life a lot of times. Nevertheless, Naruto walked over to Mizuki.

Mizuki said "Naruto, I need your help with something quick."

Naruto said "Sure, what is it?"

Mizuki said "I'm on my test for becoming a Jounnin. One of the requirements is to get a ninja of lower level to get something from the Hokage Tower called the Forbidden Scroll of Seals. I need you to steal it and bring it to a shed outside the village. Will you help me, Naruto?"

Naruto said "Sure, you can count on me." While he said that, Naruto was thinking _'What the fuck? You have to be a complete idiot to fall for that one. How stupid does he think I am? It's called the Forbidden Scroll of Seals for a reason, dumbass. The Forbidden gave you away.'_

Mizuki said "Great, Naruto. Here." Mizuki handed Naruto a map. He continued, saying "This map will show you where you can find the shed outside the village. I'm really counting on you Naruto."

Naruto said "Okay, I'll go right now."

Naruto then took off for the Hokage Tower. When he arrived, he told the Hokage what he was told by Mizuki. The Hokage said that he would never endanger the Forbidden Scroll of Seals like that. The hokage was about to call the anbu to arrest Mizuki, but Naruto had a different plan. He always wanted to fight someone of higher rank than him.

**____________________________________________________________**

(At shed-Outside Village)

Naruto was waiting outside the village with the real Forbidden Scroll of Seals. He thought that since he was waiting for Mizuki to come back, he might as well look at the scroll. He saw the first move on there was the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, the Shadow Clone Jutsu. Naruto read the description:

_The Kage Bunshin no Jutsu is an A-rank jutsu. This jutsu creates clones like the basic Bunshin Jutsu, but the clones are solid. The Kage Bunshin no Jutsu takes a lot of chakra to complete, which is why I labeled it forbidden. 10 ninja of the village tried it and rolled over dead from chakra exhaustion. _

_After experimenting with the Jutsu, I found that the clones all take a specific amount of Chakra. The chakra they have is used to sustain their life. If they run out of chakra, they poof out of existence. They can also do Jutsu, provided that they have enough chakra. _

_Whatever the clone saw, heard, or read is transferred back to the user when the clone is dispelled. Also, when the clone is dispelled, whatever amount of chakra they have left is sent back to the user. If too many Kage Bunshin are dispelled at one time, the knowledge can cause severe headaches, even death. If you learn this Jutsu, I advise you to be careful._

_Signed,_

_Hashirama Senju_

Naruto looked at the handseals of the Jutsu and immediately got started on doing the Jutsu. After a little while, he got the technique down. He sat down and read the scroll again and saw another attack like the Kage Bunshin.

_Fire Style: Solar Destruction_

_The Fire Style: Solar Destruction Jutsu is an A-rank Jutsu. The Solar Destruction Jutsu is different from many other jutsu in the fact that hand seals aren't required to do the technique. This attack draws on the Sun's rays and focuses it into a blast. The user can direct the blast to wherever they want it to go. This attack takes up a lot of chakra, more than the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. This attack takes longer to charge up during the night, but other than that, night and day don't affect the Jutsu any. This attack is not recommended for anyone lower than Jounnin rank. _

_You may be able to use chakra to compensate for the lack of solar energy, but I haven't tried that yet. I advise you to be cautious of using this attack._

_Signed,_

_Minato Namikaze_

Naruto looked at the handseals and tried to start the Jutsu. It took awhile, but he was able to get a blast ready. When he fired it, he saw that it burned things, like a flamethrower. Naruto kept working on the attack, and eventually tried to add chakra to the attack. When he did, the attack went out of control and blew up right in his face. After trying it a few more times, Naruto realized that it kept blowing up because of his lack of chakra control. When more chakra is added to the equation than the amount used to gather solar energy, it becomes too much for Naruto to control and it blows up. Naruto got up and tried it again, but this time he used Spiritual Energy instead of chakra. The attack grew bigger, but he was able to control it. He didn't even need that much sunlight.

Naruto looked up in the sky to see that it was dusk. Naruto realized that Mizuki wouldn't be there for a few hours, so he took a little nap. When he woke up, Mizuki still wasn't there. After a few minutes, Iruka showed up. He landed in front of Naruto and said "Naruto, what the hell are you doing? You know that the Forbidden Scroll of Seals is called 'Forbidden' for a reason."

Naruto said "I did this to help Mizuki. He said that he was going for his Jounnin Exam, and one of the tests is to get a ninja of lower rank to bring this scroll to him."

Iruka looked at Naruto questioningly and said "What are you talking about Naruto? The Jounnin Exam is nothing like that. The Jounnin Exam doesn't even take place for another 6 months."

Naruto faked ignorance again and said "But Mizuki told me where to find the scroll. He told me where this shack was. He even told me how to get here. Why would he tell me this?"

Iruka narrowed his eyes in thought a little bit, but then widened them in surprise. He said "If Mizuki told you about this place, then that means-"

Iruka was cut off when a kunai came forward and impaled him in the chest. Iruka stumbled back and fell down. Naruto ran toward him to see if he was in trouble, but saw that the wound would only bleed for a while and that Iruka would be fine, but he wasn't in any shape to fight.

Naruto looked to where the kunai came from, but already knew who threw it. Mizuki was standing on a tree limb, laughing maniacally. He said "I see that you're stupid enough to fall for such a stupid lie, Naruto. Really, a Jounnin Exam, how stupid can you get?"

Naruto said "I'm not the stupid one Mizuki. You are. So tell me, what are you planning to do with the Scroll?"

Mizuki said "Well I might as well tell you since you and your pathetic teacher are about to die anyway. My plan was to take this scroll to Orochimaru and use it to take over Konoha."

Naruto chuckled and said "Well that's a stupid idea. Your one problem is that you think you can beat me."

Mizuki said "We'll see. But before we start, I wanna tell you why the villagers hate you so much."

Iruka looked at Mizuki and said "No Mizuki, you can't. It's forbidden to. Ever since the day the decree was placed in effect."

Naruto turned around to Iruka and said "What decree are you talking about, Iruka-sensei?"

Mizuki said "And you think I care? Naruto, the decree was about that no one can tell the younger generation that the Nine-Tailed Fox lives inside you. The same fox that destroyed our village and killed our Yondaime is you. It was sealed inside your body when you were born and that's why everyone hates you. You're nothing but a demon in a pathetic human's body. You're a disgrace to our village Naruto Uzumaki, and prepare to die!"

Naruto widened his eyes in shock while Mizuki kept talking. Mizuki saw that Naruto was shocked, so he took the chance and grabbed a giant shuriken from his back and threw it at Naruto. When it was 5 feet away from Naruto, Naruto vanished.

Naruto reappeared behind Mizuki and said only three words. "I already know." Naruto then kicked Mizuki in his back. While Mizuki was falling off the tree branch, Naruto shot three ki blasts at Mizuki while Mizuki was still in the air. Mizuki fell 20 feet and landed in a smoking heap. But he didn't stay down. He got back up to his feet and said "So, you're stronger than I originally thought. No matter. I can still deal with you." Mizuki made a handseal and that's when all hell broke loose.

What Naruto didn't see was that Mizuki had a marking on his neck. But it wasn't just any marking. It was the Earth Curse Seal of Orochimaru. The lines of the seal started spreading all around Mizuki's body, increasing his power.

Naruto sensed the power rolling off Mizuki and knew that this wouldn't be good. With a power increase like that, it would be hard to match. Naruto shot off three ki blasts quickly, hoping to get the drop on Mizuki. Unfortunately the curse seal multiplied Mizuki's power to a great level, so he dodged the blasts. Mizuki rushed to Naruto and started attacking. Naruto fought back and matched Mizuki blow for blow. Mizuki tried to jump back a little and pull out a sword, but when he swung it at Naruto, it didn't phase him. Naruto easily broke it on his forearm and punched Mizuki in his face. Naruto charged up energy into his right hand. The attack took a dark glow. Naruto aimed his hand to where Mizuki fell at and shot it out, yelling "Spirit Shot!"

The attack sailed towards Mizuki, but Mizuki stood up and jumped into the tree branches, leaving the attack to detonate on the floor. Naruto looked up to see that Mizuki had jumped off the tree branches and was coming back down. Naruto charged up the attack in his hand again. He said "You can't dodge while you're in the air, Mizuki. Spirit Shot!"

The second attack sailed through the air to Mizuki's spot in the air. Mizuki braced himself for the attack, and it hit him. When the attack exploded, a smokescreen was left. There was a plume of smoke that trailed down to the ground, and Naruto realized that that was where Mizuki landed. There was still smoke over there. Naruto took advantage of the smoke and dashed over to the spot and let out a ki-charged right punch. The punch was caught. Naruto tried to pull back, but Mizuki had a tight grip on his fist. When the smoke cleared, there was something standing where he thought Mizuki was.

The monster's ears were longer than a human's and were pointed up. The monster had claws in place of nails. It had dark brown fur growing everywhere, with black stripes. The monster was smiling, showing its' grotesque pointed teeth. It was drooling. It's eyes were changed to resemble those of a cat.

The monster spoke in a voice that shadowed Mizuki's. It said "Now for Round 2!".

The monster pulled Naruto in and punched Naruto in the chest with his right fist. The punch was even stronger than before. If Naruto didn't have bones of steel, the lower part of his backbone would be cracked. Naruto went flying backwards at a fast pace. He thought he would keep flying, but Mizuki interfered. He ran from his original spot and reappeared behind Naruto. He drew his right foot back and kicked Naruto right in the head, sending him flying upwards.

The only thought that passed through his mind was '_Increased strength, increased speed, this Mizuki doesn't play.' _Naruto looked up to see that Mizuki was already up there, his left foot extended with the heel directly over his head. He attack probably knocked something in Naruto's mind out of place. Naruto was propelled down by the kick, landing on the ground and making a crater.

Naruto groaned in pain, but had to cut it short. He rolled to his left, barely dodging Mizuki coming down with a left punch. Naruto barely dodged, but where Mizuki's arm struck was a foot deep hole. Naruto got up on one knee, but couldn't get all the way up because Mizuki saw him and punched him in his face. Naruto went flying backwards from the attack, finally hitting a tree. Naruto was in too much pain to stop himself from falling off the tree. He landed on the ground in a broken heap.

Naruto looked up to see Mizuki standing there with his foot up. It looked like he was about to smash down on Naruto's head. He said "Any last words, you demon filth?"

An unidentified female voice came from the treetops. It said "I got some. Spirit Arrow!" Out of the treetops came a yellow arrow. The arrow sailed towards Mizuki and hit him in his neck. The arrow then exploded. When the smoke cleared, Mizuki looked fine, except for some singed fur around where the arrow hit.

The voice said "Want some more? Spirit Shot!"

The same attack that Naruto blasted Mizuki with earlier sailed through the air. Mizuki brought his arm up to block, blocking the blast without much trouble.

The voice then said "Heaven's Wrath!"

A white ball of energy sailed through the air, going for Mizuki. Mizuki braced himself to block it. It worked, but the fur on his forearms wasn't growing back anytime soon.

Mizuki laughed, saying "You can't defeat me. This no-talent demon couldn't. What makes you think you can?"

Mizuki heard a voice behind him that said "No-talent? We'll see about that."

Mizuki didn't have to turn around to see who it was. But he turned around anyway. And when he did, his face was re-introduced to Naruto's right fist. This punch was a lot stronger though. The attack sent him sailing back into a tree. Mizuki hopped back up to his feet and saw Super Naruto standing there. Naruto made a dash for Mizuki. But with the power increase from the second level curse seal, he was able to see Naruto dash at him. Mizuki decided to meet Naruto at the middle. He went on all fours and dashed forward, going twice as fast as he usually would have. Him and Naruto met in the middle, their fists pushing for power.

While Mizuki and Naruto were having their push of war, the person who attacked Mizuki dropped out of the trees. It was Hinata (Who didn't see that coming?). She ran over to where Iruka was and put her hand on his chest. She took out the kunai still lodged in his chest. She focused chakra into her hands and said "Mystical Palm Jutsu!".

Her hand took a green glow around it. When she put her hands on the wound, it started closing. After a few seconds it healed perfectly. Hinata turned around to see that Mizuki and Naruto were done pushing each other. They pulled back and punched each other in the face.

After Mizuki punched him, Naruto fazed away. He reappeared behind Mizuki and tried to punch him, but Mizuki crouched down. Mizuki jumped up, trying to head butt Naruto, but Naruto leaned back and avoided the attack. Naruto jumped backwards and shot off ki blasts. They hit Mizuki, but thanks to the 2nd level of the curse seal, it barely affected him.

Naruto looked behind him to see that Hinata was right behind him. He said "You chose a great time to join the party, Hinata. I would've been taking a dirt nap if it wasn't for you. Thanks."

She smirked and said "I know. I'm just doing my job of saving your butt. What was this, like the 12th time?"

Naruto frowned and said "11th time. That business with that assassin doesn't count."

Naruto let a small smirk come on his face. He looked to see that the smoke from the ki blasts were clearing and Mizuki was charging him. He turned to Hinata and winked to her. He said "I think we should do the Feint and Blast?"

Hinata said "I do too."

Hinata started charging an attack up, while Naruto charged Mizuki. He kept charging until Mizuki was 3 feet away from him. The Naruto disappeared. When he did, Hinata cried out "Heaven's Wrath!" and sent out a white attack that sailed and hit Mizuki dead on.

Mizuki flew back from the force of the blast. When he landed, Naruto appeared beside him. Naruto made a handseal and said "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."

All of a sudden, 9 more Naruto's appeared around the circle. They all cupped their hands beside their hip. They charged up energy until it turned an orange/red color. They then said "Fire Style: Solar Destruction" and fired. The concentrated beams of Spiritual and Solar Energy all went forward, hitting Mizuki dead on. After a few seconds the Kage Bunshins ran out of power and they disappeared. Naruto let the attack die and looked into the smoke of what was left behind. When the smoke cleared, there was Mizuki. He was knocked out of this second level curse seal form. He was laying there with his clothes burnt and unconscious. Naruto ran down and picked up Mizuki.

Hinata picked up the Forbidden Scroll and helped up Iruka. Naruto walked over to Hinata, smiled and said "Thanks again. I don't know where I would be without you, Hinata."

Hinata smiled and looked at Naruto. Naruto and Hinata kept looking at each other like they were having some kind of out-of-body experience. It was like they were in their own little world.

Iruka saw this and smirked. He thought to himself _'There's nothing more romantic than your first true love. I hope they invite me to their wedding. But now's the time to break this up.' _

Iruka said "Come on you lovebirds. We gotta get this traitor and this scroll back to the village. You can stare at each other later."

Iruka's statement knocked them out of la-la-land and made them realize that they had been staring at each other for a while now. They looked away from each other quickly, blushing. Iruka laughed and said "Come on already."

Hinata and Naruto ran forward, catching up to Iruka. While they were walking back to the village, they occasionally looked at the other.

**_____________________________________________________________**

(End)

Originally I was gonna make this entire chapter a flashback until the Valley of the End Battle, but I changed my mind. Anyway, I can't exactly say when the next chapter of this will come out. See you later.


	2. Student and Master

Yo, here's the next chapter of Dragon's Rebirth. I'm also updating Return of the Dragon at this time.

**________________________________________________________________**

Naruto and Hinata were at Ichiraku's with Iruka. They had just dropped off Mizuki to the hospital. He was under ANBU guard and was watched all the time. Naruto made a clone and told it to deliver the forbidden scroll to the Hokage. Afterwards, Iruka volunteered to pay for Ichiraku's.

Naruto and Hinata were eating, avoiding the others gaze. Iruka said "Guys, there's something I gotta say. Now that you're genin, things will get a whole lot harder. The enemies you'll have to fight won't hold back. They will be trying to kill you. You'll be entering the lonely life of a shinobi, an assassin. You have to expect danger everywhere you go. It's a really hard job, and I hope that you two are ready for it."

Naruto smirked to himself and said "Don't worry Iruka-sensei. Of course we're ready. I'll become the greatest ninja ever, and you'll be there to support me, won't you?"

Iruka smiled and said "Naruto, you know that I support you. But I'm not the ones you'll have to convince that you're the best. You'll have to convince the villagers and everyone against you that you're the best choice to lead them."

Naruto said "Don't worry about me, I can."

Hinata said "I hope you can."

After their meal, Naruto and Hinata left the Ramen Stand to go train some more. Since Naruto taught Hinata about ki, they've been training everyday together. After he taught her how to control the energy, they put their brains together and, using intellect combined with child imagination, they created many techniques together. Naruto walked to the middle of the training ground they were at and said "Okay, Hinata. Show me what you got."

Hinata bent down a little and concentrated. Power started rolling off of her. Her clothes started blowing in the wind her power created. When she stopped, she had an aura. The fiery aura was dark blue at the end and white in the middle. She said "How's this?"

Naruto whistled and said "That's great Hinata. You're getting really strong. Now I've been racking my brain for new ideas for attacks, and I came up with one while I was waiting on Mizuki last night. You remember that show we watched when we were little kids?"

Hinata racked her brain for an answer, and then said "You mean Power Rangers?"

Naruto said "Yeah. You know how the guy in white could fly?"

Hinata smiled a little, seeing where this was going.

Naruto said "Well, I thought we could try flying like them. Think about it Hinata. How many ninja do you know who can fly?"

Hinata thought about it and said "Well, actually none. It can't be any different than anything else we can do. Let's try it."

Naruto smiled a little and said "Cool. Now when I was trying it before Mizuki came, I was able to levitate myself off the ground a few feet. What you have to do is…"

After explaining the gist of it to Hinata, she tried it. After concentrating, she was able to levitate a few feet off of the ground. When she landed, she and Naruto tried again. They got higher and higher. After practicing more and more, they were able to fly easily. They were doing cartwheels and backflips while levitating over some of the tallest trees in the forest.

(If you're wondering how they can do that, they've known how to manipulate ki for years. Manipulating it to fly isn't really gonna be that hard since they're experienced.)

Soon they were racing all over the forest. After they got bored and landed, Naruto and Hinata started their training. With Naruto helping her, Hinata's strength grew to tremendous levels. She grew a lot of muscle and she was strong enough to carry fully grown men over twice her body weight without trouble.

After training that day, the two went to the Hokage Tower. Since they graduated from the Academy, they had three weeks to do whatever they wanted. But they had to get their picture taken and get emancipated for their ninja license. The duo decided to get their duties out of the way now.

After they took their picture, they went to the Hokage's office. They turned in their ninja licenses and the Hokage stamped them, and their citizenship records to show that they were legally emancipated. As Naruto and Hinata were about to leave, they were stopped by a kid busting into the Hokage's office. The kid charged at the Hokage with a shuriken, saying "Your time is through, Grandpa. I'll take that hat then I'll become Hokage!" As the kid was running toward the Hokage, he wasn't watching where he was going and he slipped on his huge scarf. The kid fell forward and hit his head on the wooden floor.

When they saw that, Hinata and Naruto just started laughing. Seeing them laughing, the kid got embarrassed. Since Naruto was closest to him, be blamed Naruto for tripping him. Naruto said "I didn't trip you kid. You fell over your own scarf, you klutz."

The kid started yelling at Naruto. He said "Shut up. I know you tripped me, now apologize."

Naruto was starting to get pissed off now. He'd been blamed for a bunch of shit that he didn't do in his life, and he wasn't gonna let some snot-nosed kid blame him for shit. Naruto picked up the kid by his collar and was about to punch him, before a man wearing all black and black sunglasses came in. He saw what Naruto was doing and he said "Drop the grandson of the Hokage, you filth!"

Naruto looked at the guy, then looked, at the kid, then looked at the Hokage. He got a confused look on his face and said "This snot-nosed punk is your grandson?"

The kid smirked and said "Let me guess. You're gonna be like the other punks in this village and kiss my ass since I'm the Hokage's grandson."

The Hokage's eyes widened. He said "Konohamaru, don't use that kind of language!"

The kid, now known as Konohamaru, ignored his grandfather. The kid closed his eyes and put on a smile, expecting to be placed down, apologized to, and see the guy run away. Unfortunately for him, that wasn't the case.

Naruto punched the kid in his head, sending him crashing into the desk of the Hokage. Naruto said "I don't care if you were the Hokage's grandmother! If you don't respect me, then don't expect me to respect you, punk."

The guy in black looked appalled at the fact that the demon hit the Hokage's grandson. The guy pulled out a kunai and went to stab Naruto, but when it reached him, the knife went through a spectral transparent version of Naruto. Naruto tapped the man on his shoulder. He turned, only to hear Naruto yell out "Spirit Tags!"

The man then felt 10 punches to his chest. They were very light, like Naruto just tapped him. The Jounnin came out fine, saying "What the hell was that?"

Naruto then smirked and said "Spirit Tags, Ignite!"

The man's chest then started glowing yellow. The glow grew brighter and brighter. The glow then exploded, blowing the Jounnin out of the window. Naruto looked at the Hokage and said "Who the hell was that closet homosexual?"

Konohamaru looked at Naruto, amazed at what he did. _'He just completely blew Ebisu-sensei to the Hokage Monument. How did he do that? That was amazing!'_

The Hokage chuckled to himself a little and said "That was Ebisu. He's the special Jounnin tutor for my grandson. "

Naruto said "Good. Tell that catcher to stay away from me. I won't hold back next time." People like him had been giving Naruto crap all his life. It pissed him off to no end to see that that prejudice stretched so far into the Ninja System. He wasn't gonna take it anymore.

Naruto walked out of the Hokage's office, Hinata behind him. What they didn't know was that Konohamaru had snuck out of his granddads office and was following them from behind. Well, actually they knew, they just didn't react.

The two ninja walked down the street, with Konohamaru following them. He was following them in a disguise that looked like a box painted to look like a rock. When they went by fences, Konohamaru would pull out a sheet painted the same color as the fence, so he could blend in. Unfortunately for him, he held it up the wrong way, so it actually made him stand out more.

The two ninja Konohamaru was trailing both saw what he was doing. Naruto said quietly to Hinata "What the hell is wrong with this kid? No rock is shaped perfectly square. And he's holding up the fence tarp wrong. How stupid does this kid think we are?"

Hinata smacked Naruto in the back of the head. She scolded him, saying "Don't make fun of him. He's just a beginner in the ninja arts. He can't even get into the academy yet. Do you remember how you were when you first started learn to be a ninja?"

Naruto pouted a little and said "Yeah, I kept messing up. It took a long time for me to get things right. I probably got caught 100 times at least before I got better."

Hinata said "Konohamaru is exactly like you. Right now, he doesn't have any experience. He's a beginner. I bet it would really make him happy if you gave him a few pointers."

Naruto said "No Hinata. Did you see what that kid did? He barged in to the Hokage's office without any respect to the Hokage or whoever he may be talking to?"

Hinata sighed. The kid was so much like Naruto that Naruto didn't even see it. She said "Naruto, you interrupt the Hokage in a meeting once a week, at least. You always barge in there, 'with no respect to the Hokage or whoever he may be talking to'."

Naruto said "He blamed me for tripping him when it was completely his fault."

Hinata smiled a little. She said "Do you remember last week. You loaned me your sword to practice with since mine was in the shop getting repaired. I gave it back to you, and then 2 days later you accuse me of stealing it. I go to your house and find your sword under your bed."

Naruto got a sheepish look on his face and said "I forgot I put it under there for safekeeping. I'm sorry."

Hinata said "It's okay. But you accused me of something I didn't do, just like Konohamaru accused you of something you didn't do."

Naruto was now losing his edge. He was losing his grounds on not training Konohamaru. He said "He started acting all smug about being related to the Hokage."

Hinata said "His grandfather is one of the best ninja in the world. Can you blame him for being proud of his Grandpa? What he did was wrong, I admit that. But he's a little kid. He still has time to improve. And if someone with a good heart like you doesn't help him he might never improve."

Naruto closed his eyes, and fake pouted. He said "Why can't I ever win an argument?"

Hinata laughed at him and said "You lose so many, I expected you to be used to that by now."

Naruto mock-laughed. He said "Real funny."

Naruto and Hinata started heading for a training ground, with Konohamaru following them. When they got there, they decided to show off a little. Naruto and Hinata faced each other, waiting for the other to begin. The wind was blowing leaves off of the trees surrounding the Training Ground. As a leaf flew inbetween them, their glares hardened. When the leaf hit the ground, it was a soundless signal to both to begin.

The two disappeared, moving faster than Konohamaru could see them. The reappeared in the middle, but only for an instant. Their elbows were pushing against each other, a look of strain and anger upon each face. They then disappeared again. They reappeared with Naruto's kick being blocked by Hinata's forearm. They disappeared again in a blink of an eye. That's how it kept happening. They would reappear for a brief second, and then disappear.

As they were moving too fast for him to hear, Konohamaru could hear their blows through the air. They sounded like thunderclaps each time. With each shockwave, the trees would move a little. Konohamaru looked on in amazement. He was thinking to himself _'How are they doing that?'_

Naruto and Hinata reappeared in the same places they started at. Naruto had his knees bent. His hands were at his chest, a shoulder width apart. His face had a look of strain on it. Then, a dark red ball of energy started to grow there. The ball started as small as the top of a sharpened pencil, but quickly grew. It grew until Naruto's hands were struggling to hold it. The look of strain on his face was growing more and more.

Hinata was also doing something of the sort. He was standing upright, her body turned so the right side of her body was facing Naruto. Her arm was stretched out, the palm showing. She focused energy into her palm, having a similar effect as Naruto's. The attack started off as a small ball the size of a sharpened pencil tip. But then it grew quickly, turning black. The attack grew to the size of a beach ball, Hinata struggling to gather and control the immense energy for the attack.

Naruto was also charging his attack up. When it was ready, Naruto thrusted his hands forward, yelling "Destruction Wave!"

Hinata also let her attack go. He pulled her arm back a little, then thrusted her hand forward, yelling "Spirit Shot!"

Konohamaru was watching them gather energy, becoming more and more amazed by the second at what they were doing. _'The amount of energy is so great that you can actually see it! I thought that could only be done by the strongest of Jutsu! I have to get them to teach me that. If I do, that'll get the drop on Grandpa, and then I can become Hokage!'_

The attacks sailed forward, hitting each other in the air. The attacks struggled against each other. The two fighters started pouring more and more energy into their orbs of destruction. Soon, Naruto's energy started moving toward Hinata. Hinata started feeling the shockwave of the energy pushing each other. She took a deep breath and forced her energy forward, pushing it closer and closer to Naruto. Naruto started pushing back.

The collision of the energy balls was still in the middle. Naruto and Hinata started walking forward, trying to get an advantage on the other. Eventually they were about 5 feet next to each other. The intensity of the shockwaves from the collision blew the two back. They landed farther away from each other. Both of the two fighters were on the ground, close to passing out. Naruto got enough breath to say "Hinata, truce?"

Hinata was about to say 'Hell no!', but then her stomach started aching more. She said "Yeah. Okay."

Both of the teens stood up, clothes partly singed and torn. Naruto looked over to where Konohamaru was at and said "Okay Konohamaru, we know you're out there."

Konohamaru came out of the trees and said "That was so cool!"

Naruto chuckled and said "Yeah, I know."

Konohamaru then said "Can you teach me those attacks?"

Naruto soon got serious and said "No, I can't."

Konohamaru then got mad and said "Why not?"

Naruto said "I can't because you don't have enough energy. It took me and Hinata 6 years of hard work, dedication, sweat, blood, and tears to be able to use these attacks. If I taught these to you, you would only die."

Konohamaru looked down in sadness, then looked at Naruto and said "Then teach me. Put me through the same thing that you two went through."

Naruto got a shocked look on his face. He said "Why would you want that Konohamaru? It's not easy at all."

Konohamaru said "I will do anything to learn these. All my life, I've been called the 'Honorable Grandson'. That's the only way people know me. No one knows my name. I don't even have an identity to these people. I want to be my own person. I don't want to only be known as the 3rd Hokage's Grandson. I want to be my own person."

Naruto looked into Konohamaru's eyes and saw the amount of determination in his eyes. He was originally about to say no, but he caved in and said "You know what, Konohamaru? I'll train you. But first, I want you to promise me something."

Konohamaru was about to say 'Sure, anything', but then got a questionable look on his face and sad "What?"

Naruto narrowed his eyes at Konohamaru, showing that he was dead serious. He said "These Jutsu we're gonna teach you, they're only able to be done by us. I want you to swear to me and Hinata on the honor of the Sarutobi Clan that you won't tell anyone about this unless we say that you can. Also, I want you to swear that you'll never use these jutsu on a fellow Leaf ninja or on a ninja of an allied village, unless you have no choice. These Jutsu are very dangerous and even the smallest one can seriously damage someone. I don't want you to kill an ally."

Konohamaru stood up, and then grabbed a kunai. He cut his palm with the kunai, the blood dripping on the ground. He looked at Naruto with eyes full of determination and said "On the honor of the Sarutobi Clan, I, Konohamaru Sarutobi, hereby swear that I will never use these Jutsu on an ally, and that I will never tell anyone these secrets unless you or Hinata say I can."

Naruto smiled and said "Okay then, Konohamaru, let's start the teaching."

Konohamaru jumped into the air with joy. Naruto said "Konohamaru, I want you to sit down."

After telling Konohamaru about what chakra is made of and telling him how to extract ki from chakra, Konohamaru took to it like a fish to water. It turned out he had a lot more chakra than other kids his age. After a few hours of trying, Konohamaru could easily fire off small balls of ki that explode upon impact.

Naruto was proud of Konohamaru. He was taking to this quickly, faster than Naruto did. Naruto said "You're doing great Konohamaru. Now, I want you to focus more energy into the attack. When you feel that you can't hold it anymore, I want you to shoot it off."

Konohamaru did just that. He focused his energy into his palm. It grew more and more, until he started feeling heat from the ball. It was as big as his head now. Before hit was only the size of a baseball. Konohamaru shot it off at a nearby tree. The attack hit and blew it and other trees around it to smithereens. Hinata whistled and said "Great job, Konohamaru. You destroyed those trees. It took me an entire week to destroy a single tree."

Naruto started smiling and said "You should feel happy Konohamaru. When I and Hinata started we didn't have a teacher. Hell, even the Hokage didn't know what we were talking about. We went forward on our own. We took a lot of dead ends that almost killed us. Now you don't have to. Now, how do you feel Konohamaru?"

Konohamaru turned to Naruto and said "I feel great. I could still go on."

Naruto said "Okay then, this time, I want you to focus ki in your hand, but this time, instead of releasing it in a ball of energy, release it as a beam. The beam has a more centralized area of damage. Where the ki ball can blow the skin off of someone's entire torso, the ki beam can put a hole through their body. Aim the attack at that tree right there." Naruto pointed to his right to some random tree.

Konohamaru focused the energy just like Naruto said. He then let the attack go, still feeding energy into it, making it a beam of energy. The beam put a hole through the tree, and the other 5 behind it. Naruto whistled and said "Konohamaru, you're a prodigy at this."

Konohamaru said "Thanks."

As Naruto was about to teach him something else, the ninja in black from the Hokage's office came. He said "Demon, what are you doing to the Hokage's grandson?"

Naruto looked at Konohamaru and said "Konohamaru, who the hell is that?"

Konohamaru said "That's my old teacher Ebisu."

Ebisu said "Hand over the Hokage's grandson you demon filth."

Konohamaru said "No, Ebisu. You don't even teach me anything. I heard you talking to your friend. You only took the job for the extra money. You're not a teacher. Naruto has taught me more in one day then you have in the entire month of teaching me."

Ebisu said "Konohamaru, what about your dream of becoming Hokage? My teaching is the quickest way to become Hokage. It's the quickest shortcut."

Naruto said "Shut up, Ebisu. The kid said he didn't wanna go with you. Why don't you try someone more your age, pedophile."

Ebisu smirked and said "You'll pay for that, you demon!"

Naruto said "Oh, really? Try to stop this, Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."

Instantly, 30 Naruto's showed up. Ebisu chuckled and said "You'll find me harder do defeat than that fool Ebisu."

The Naruto's smirked and said "Well then, bring it."

Ebisu said "Gladly." and jumped off the tree he was on. He pulled out two kunai and started attacking the clones. At first, Ebisu thought this would be a cakewalk, but then he saw the major difference between his idea and reality. Naruto could fight.

The Shadow Clones were doing a lot of Taijutsu moves he originally thought were impossible. They were keeping him back. They were also very quick. He hadn't even dispelled one yet.

While Ebisu was being handled by the Shadow Clones, the original Naruto jumped farther back. He looked to Konohamaru and said "Take notes, Konohamaru. Soon, this is what you'll be able to do." Naruto bent his knees and focused energy into his palm. The energy orb took a blood red color. Naruto narrowed his eyes and focused on Ebisu. When he saw that Ebisu was paying no attention to him, he yelled out "Demon's Rage!" and threw the attack.

The attack went forward. It blew up any Kage Bunshin that got in its way. It reached Ebisu and blew up, sending him flying. To where, they didn't know. Probably to hit the Hokage Monument. Konohamaru got a confused look on his face and said "Naruto, why are you able to use them on allies but not me?"

Naruto said "Because, Konohamaru, I'm a master at these Jutsu. I know how to drain all the power out of it, so it will only send them flying, but it won't do any other damage. You haven't been taught that yet. And until you do, I expect you to keep your vow."

Konohamaru said "Okay then, boss."

Naruto was about to ask what was the matte with the boss stuff, but then he got a signal from the writer. The writer wanted to wrap the story up, so Naruto took Konohamaru and Hinata to Ichiraku's and didn't bother to ask about the boss stuff.

**________________________________________________________________**

(End)

Okay then, here's the second chapter of Dragon's Rebirth. It's taking time because I'm very very lazy. Anyway, expect another attack from Sasuke later on in the story.


	3. The Way You Make Me Feel

Okay guys, after over 6 months of waiting, I give you the 3rd Chapter of Dragon's Rebirth.

* * *

After hanging with Konohamaru, Naruto and Hinata decided to call it a day. Deciding to walk Hinata home, the two arrived at the front gates of the Hyuuga Compound. Seeing as Naruto was a regular at the compound, the guards let the two pass.

Naruto said "I gotta go get some sleep for tomorrow, Hinata-chan. So, I'll see you tomorrow?"

Hinata said "Yeah." Hinata started trying to look anywhere but at Naruto's eyes. She felt something rising in her and felt that if she looked at his eyes, she'd lose it. She already concluded that she had romantic feelings for the warrior in front of her. The problem was that she was too damn scared of the consequences to act on her emotions. For some reason today, seeing him around Konohamaru almost caused her to slip on the small hold she had on her romantic feelings. Eventually, she couldn't stand it anymore. Without thinking of the consequences, she leaned over and kissed Naruto, on the lips. When she pulled back, her eyes were widened. _'What the hell did I just do!'_ was the thing she was yelling to herself in her mind. Trying to end the moment as quick as possible, she just said a quick "bye" and turned into her room, and shut the door.

Standing there with his eyes as big as a deers' eyes caught in headlights, Naruto couldn't move or say anything. He just stayed there with his jaw on the ground. A passing Branch Family member said "So, she finally kissed you, huh Naruto?"

Naruto immediately turned to who said it. "Shut the hell up Neji."

Neji said "What's the matter? You've liked her since you were 10. She's loved you since she was 9. I'm surprised it took you guys this long to actually admit it."

Naruto said "My love life is none of your business."

Neji smirked and said "'Love life', huh? It sounds like you two are getting serious."

Naruto said "Mind your own business, Neji."

Neji, still smirking, said "Okay then, Naruto. Just don't make my uncle into a grandpa too soon." and started walking away.

Naruto yelled after him "Neji!" but Neji wasn't listening to him. Naruto muttered "White-eyed bastard." under his breath and walked away. Getting in some small training at a training ground, Naruto left to go to his house.

The next day, Naruto met Hinata at the training ground. Avoiding the topic for the entire day, Naruto went home. The two were awkward around each other for an entire week. After training for a while, Naruto decided to ask the question that he had been wanting to ask since that night. "Hinata, what happened last week?"

Hinata knew what he was talking about. To be honest, she didn't know why she did that either. It just seemed like the right thing to do. She let her emotions get the better of her. She had been in love with Naruto for over two years and she didn't do anything about it. She was tired of holding back her emotions and let them go. Playing like she didn't know, Hinata said "What do you mean?"

Naruto walked closer to Hinata and said "When you kissed me? Why did you do that?"

Hinata sighed, looked at the ground, not wanting to look into Naruto's eyes. Eventually, she just sucked it up, and said "Because Naruto…I…I guess because I've been wanting to since I met you. When you saved me from that Cloud Jounnin years ago, I started feeling safe being near you. I guess that…after years and years of being by your side, I started falling more and more for you. Last night, my feelings for you became too much to handle, and I needed to let them go. I think that's why I kissed you."

Looking up into Naruto's eyes, Hinata felt courage go through her body. She mustered up all that she could to say what she was about to next. She gazed into Naruto's eyes and said "The reason I kissed you Naruto, is because…I think…I love you."

Throughout Hinata's speech, Naruto's heart started soaring more and more. He always felt the same way about Hinata. But he had trouble showing love for someone because he had never known what true love was. He was an orphan. The only love he got was from the Sandaime, which was a grandfatherly kind, and from Iruka, a brotherly kind. He never had the feeling of falling for another person. But after falling for Hinata when he was 10, he thought to himself that, if falling for someone felt like anything, it was like how he felt for Hinata.

And after being around her for so long, the feeling only intensified. From a small flicker, to an uncontainable passion that was begging to be released whenever he was around her. He was used to hiding the feeling, but he felt that he couldn't any longer. To be honest, his heart skipped a beat every time he saw her. Just being around her gave him goose bumps of excitement. But he never told her how he felt, because he didn't know what it was. He didn't want to tell her it was love and to just have it be something else entirely.

But for some reason, Naruto's feelings started rising the more she talked. When she said she thought she loved him, it caused Naruto's control over his feelings to momentarily break. Enough for him to say to her, "I love you too, Hinata."

Mentally cursing himself over the slip in emotions, Naruto was completely confused as to what to do next. Looking into Hinata's eyes, he let his emotions take control yet again. Doing what he felt was right, Naruto leaned in. Hinata leaned in also. They met in the middle in a quick kiss. But that kiss told them everything they needed to know. Kissing again, this time deeper, the new couple felt…complete.

Pulling apart, Naruto said "Hinata, does this mean that we're a couple now?"

Hinata looked at Naruto and said "Depends, do you want to be?"

Naruto immediately said "Sure, do you?"

Hinata said "Yes."

Naruto smiled and said "Then I guess we're officially a couple now, Hinata."

Giving her a small kiss, Naruto said "Now, let's get back to training."

Before they could though, they heard a familiar voice say "So, the two weaklings of the class hook up?"

Looking at where the voice came from, the two snarled when they saw Sasuke standing there. He said "I guess everyone can find love, even you two."

Naruto groaned and said "I was having a good day until you interfered in it Sasuke. What the hell do you want?"

Sasuke said "I want a rematch."

Naruto said "You say that every time I whoop your ass, and every time I win the rematch. When will you learn? Or are you a masochist or something?"

Sasuke said "I said we fight. Now."

Naruto said "I've beaten your ass what, like 90 times already? Just give up."

Sasuke glared at Naruto and started doing handseals. Naruto huffed and

muttered "I guess he'll never learn."

Sasuke yelled out "Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" and shot 10 fireballs at Naruto. Naruto noticed that these were about 1.5 times the regular size of the Phoenix Flower fireballs. Naruto held his hand out and manipulated his ki to form a protective dome around him and Hinata. The fireballs hit the dome, but nothing happened.

Naruto said "Is that the best you got?"

Sasuke snarled "Not by a long shot." and activated his Sharingan. He charged at Naruto, going for the forward approach. Naruto, seeing Sasuke do this, shot a ki blast at Sasuke's feet. Sasuke, by reflex, did a flip over the yellow ball of ki, and turned upright to face Naruto.

But Naruto was gone. The only person standing there was Hinata. He demanded of her "Where did the loser go?"

Hinata sighed and said "You'd think that since you're from the 'Elite Uchiha Clan' you'd have some common sense to look behind you when you can't find an opponent."

Turning around, Sasuke couldn't see Naruto. As Sasuke was turning back around to face Hinata, he said "He's not bac-"

He didn't finish his sentence, due to Naruto being in his way and punching him in the face. Sasuke was knocked backwards, but was able to recover and stand, looking at Naruto with rage filled eyes. Naruto balled his right hand up into a fist, then extended out the thumb and index finger at a 90 degree angle from each other. He then bent his thumb in a right angle, making it look like he had a fake gun in his hands. He pointed his fake gun at Sasuke, then said "Bullet Shot!"

A compact amount of ki flew out the tip of his index finger, and smashed Sasuke right in the gut. Sasuke staggered back 5 feet from the blow, not expecting something like that to hurt. Naruto smirked and fired off another weaker shot, aimed at Sasuke's forehead. With his Sharingan, Sasuke saw the attack going for him, but he couldn't move away in time and got hit in the forehead, knocking him on his ass.

Naruto started laughing and shot another blast at Sasuke, full power. Sasuke rolled backwards and dodged the attack. Naruto shot yet another one off, but this time didn't fully charge it, knowing that Sasuke would dodge it. Naruto wasn't let down, as Sasuke rolled to the right, dodging the blast. Naruto then started aiming at Sasuke's feet, making Sasuke jump from foot to foot dodging them. Naruto started laughing since Sasuke looked like he was in some old cartoon.

Naruto started shooting off Bullet Shots with his left hand also, making Sasuke have to move twice as fast, and doubling Naruto's entertainment. After getting tired of making Sasuke dance, Naruto charged Sasuke and tried to punch him in the face. Sasuke ducked under the punch and nailed Naruto in the stomach with a punch. Naruto paused because of the pain, but so did Sasuke. Apparently the hit hurt Sasuke as much as it did Naruto.

Blocking Sasuke's right fist, Naruto went for a punch, aimed at Sasuke's stomach. The punch connected, and Sasuke was knocked back on his ass yet again. Naruto started to mock Sasuke, saying "Wasn't the Sharingan supposed to make it so that you were never hit? Either you're not used to the Sharingan, or those things I heard were extremely exaggerated. I think it was the latter."

Sasuke yelled in rage at Naruto and started attacking him again, landing a kick to Naruto's face, then a punch on the other side. Sasuke jumped in the air and did a 360 heel kick, knocking Naruto to the ground. Naruto quickly stood back up, and blocked Sasuke's punch.

Naruto dodged Sasuke's second punch, then kicked him in the chest, knocking him back. Sasuke started doing more handseals, then breathed out a Great Fireball Jutsu. Expecting this, Naruto jumped backwards, then blasted Sasuke through the Grand Fireball. The blast hit Sasuke in the chest, knocking him back. Before he could do anything else, Naruto had his right foot on Sasuke's chest, with a Spirit Sword formed on his right arm and pointed at Sasuke's neck. Naruto said "I guess that's yet another battle you lose Sasuke."

Naruto took his foot from Sasuke's chest and walked away. While he was walking away, he moved his right arm to the front of his body and shortened the blade a little. Just as expected, Sasuke took out a few kunai and threw them at Naruto's retreating form. Hearing the kunai whistle through the air, Naruto extended the blade, turned around, and sliced every one of them in half. Naruto said "You're way too predictable Sasuke."

Sasuke got even madder, and tried another Grand Fireball Jutsu at Naruto. Naruto just quietly activated his transformation, fazing out of the way of the Grand Fireball. He appeared behind Sasuke and, using his enhanced strength, punched Sasuke in the back of the head, knocking him out. Naruto dropped the transformation and walked over to Hinata. They both then took off, deciding to take their training to another Training Ground.

A few hours later, Sasuke was awakened by someone. This man had an X-shaped scar on his chin. He had gauze wrapped around his head and the right side of his face. It looked like he was missing his right arm. Sasuke said "Who the hell are you?"

The man said "I am…a friend. I saw your conflict with the Uzumaki boy."

Sasuke glared. He hated to be reminded of his defeats to Naruto. He said "What of it?"

The man smirked, saying "I know you have power, Sasuke. I can sense it within you. You want to unlock this power to kill your older brother, Itachi. But you can use the power for far more than that."

Sasuke gave the man a questioning look. He said "Go on."

The man said "I've sensed the power inside you Sasuke. It completely dwarfs that of the Uzumaki boy. The power you have inside of you can transform you from a man, to a God. I can help you realize this. Join me Sasuke, and together, we can make not only the Uzumaki boy and Itachi cower at your feet, but the entire world as well."

Sasuke thought about it. Not only Itachi, but Naruto cowering at his feet? More than that, an entire world. He could become a God, more powerful than the Biju. More powerful than anything ever seen in the universe. Sasuke said "I'm in."

The guy said "Good. I think this is the beginning of a beautiful partnership."

* * *

(1 Week later)

A week after admitting their feelings to each other, Naruto and Hinata arrived at the Academy at their class, ready to be put on a Genin Team. After everyone else came, Iruka said a heartwarming speech that the author won't type in. After the speech, Iruka said "Anyway, here's the team assignments. …Team 7 is Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, and Kiba Inuzuka. Your Jounnin Instructor will be Kakashi Hatake. Team 8 will be Naruto Uzumaki, Hinata Hyuuga, and Shino Aburame. Your Jounnin Instructor will be Kurenai Yuuhi. Team 10 will be Choji Akimichi, Shikamaru Nara, and Ino Yamanaka. Your Jounnin Instructor will be Asuma Sarutobi. Any questions?"

Some kid spoke up, saying "Who were the Rookie Shinobi and Kunoichi of the Year?"

Iruka was about to omit that little piece of information, but with everyone

requesting he tell them, he said "What the hell. The Rookie Shinobi of the Year is Naruto Uzumaki. The Rookie Kunoichi of the Year is Hinata Hyuuga."

When they were announced, Naruto and Hinata got a small blush on their faces. They expected to be in the top 5 of each list, but never expected to top it. But not everyone was like them. When their names were announced, it sent all of Sasuke's fan girls into a tirade, led by Sakura.

Sakura yelled "What are you talking about, Iruka! I got the best grades of the girls! And it's so obvious that Sasuke-kun got the title of Shinobi of the Year. What kind of joke are you trying to play?"

Iruka glared his eyes at Sakura. He expected something like this to happen. He said "First of all Sakura, it's Iruka-SENSEI to you! And second, I have my grade book right here. The entire last semester….Sasuke Uchiha, Test 1, 78, Test 2, 71, Test 8, 54 …need I go on? This entire last semester, Sasuke's highest grade on a test was an 80. Sakura Haruno…your highest grade of the last semester is a 72 .

"Whereas Naruto and Hinata have both gotten perfect scores on at least 8 of the last 20 tests of the semester. Based on these grades, it's not that hard to understand why they're the best of the class. You and Sasuke graduated the 7th and 8th best in class.

"I've known people like Sasuke all my life. Sasuke expected that his family name would convince me to change his grades to the best of the class. I'm not biased like that and I'm not gonna let Sasuke worm his way out of a grade he deserves. Sasuke did 70 percent work, so he got a 70 percent average score. That's the end of it."

Sakura and Sasuke were pissed! How dare those two losers try to take their positions as the best! They were destined to have the spots of best Shinobi and Kunoichi, not those two losers. Sasuke would've went to the Council and demanded they change the scores, but the year was already over. There was nothing he could do. He just decided on silently brooding.

Iruka said "Now if there's no other questions, you are dismissed. Come back here in one hour to meet your sensei's."

Iruka then left the room in a Shunshin. Hinata and Naruto were about to leave, but they were confronted by Sakura. Sakura yelled "Where the hell do you two think you're going?! I know that you cheated on those tests! There's no way you two dumbasses could score higher than me and my Sasuke-kun!"

Sasuke would've been there joining her, but his "business partner" said to keep a low profile for the moment. Hinata said "Sakura, shut the hell up! You lost, fair and square. Get over it. You're acting like a psycho bitch."

Naruto muttered "Is that any different from the way she usually acts?"

Sakura was about to continue her tirade, but Hinata and Naruto just walked past her completely, ignoring her screams. As they passed Ino, Ino stopped them. Hinata was thinking _'Oh God, more of this 'Sasuke-kun this' and 'Sasuke-kun' that.'_

Ino surprised them both by saying "Congratulations. You two deserved the titles."

The couple were so surprised, they almost fell over. Naruto said "Say that again?"

Ino said "I said congratulations. I saw you two training one day. You two worked your asses off to get that title and you two deserved it."

Naruto said "I would've thought you would've started screaming your head off like Sakura there."

Ino chuckled and said "I would, but since we graduated, Daddy opened my eyes to a lot of things. Mainly how far I've slacked in my training and how much of a bitch I've been to everybody since Sasuke came into my life. I just want to say that I'm sorry for how I've been acting these past few years. I just want to start over with a clean slate."

Naruto gave Ino a genuine smile and said "Don't worry Ino. It's all water under the bridge."

Ino smiled and said "Thanks." and left the room.

An hour later, a woman came through the door and said "I'm Kurenai Yuuhi. I'm here for Team 8."

Hinata, Naruto, and Shino all got up and left the room. They followed Kurenai to a local tea shop and decided to order tea. As they were waiting for their tea,

Kurenai said "Okay guys, I think it's time that we introduced ourselves. I'll go first. My name is Kurenai Yuuhi. I usually spend my time gardening, drinking tea, reading, and researching new Genjutsu. Some things that piss me off are perverts, people who take my help and advice for granted, and ignorant and cruel people. My dreams for now are helping you guys become the best ninja you can be. …How about, you start Shino?"

Shino said "My name is Shino Aburame. My hobbies are training my bug colony, researching things on new insects, and reading. Things that irritate me are ignorant people and people who talk too much. My dream for the future is taking over as the Aburame Clan Head after my father."

Kurenai said "That's a wonderful dream Shino. How about you go next Hinata-san?"

Hinata said "My name is Hinata Hyuuga. My hobbies include training my Gentle Fist Taijutsu, cooking, and spending time with my boyfriend, Naruto. My dislikes are the Elders on the Hyuuga Clan Council, the ignorant people of the village, people who use others to get what they want, and others who can't realize that they aren't the center of the universe. My dream is taking over as the Hyuuga Clan Head and abolishing the Caged Bird Seal."

Kurenai silently nodded and said "How about you, Naruto?"

Naruto said "My name is Naruto Uzumaki. My hobbies include training my abilities, hanging with my girlfriend, Hinata, and putting Sasuke Uchiha in his place. My dislikes are Sasuke Uchiha, his banshee fan girl Sakura Haruno, Danzo from the Konoha Council, the ignorant people of the village, and traitors. My dream for the future is to become Hokage and protect those I love."

Kurenai said "That's a wonderful dream Naruto. Now, after you guys finish your tea, I want you to go home and get some good rest. We are going to have a test tomorrow to see if you guys are able to actually become Genin. The test you took in the Academy was just a preliminary test. The final test will be tomorrow."

Kurenai and the others finished up their tea and decided to leave. As they left, Naruto felt something build up in his chest. He told the others to go on without him and he decided to go to another training ground. When he arrived, he crossed his legs, closed his eyes, and started to meditate. As he was meditating, he felt the familiar pull and gave in to it. He opened his eyes to see that he was in water. He stood up and turned to the huge gate. He said "Alright. I've told you before about that furball. Stop it!"

The Kyuubi rose up from his cell, saying** "Watch what you call me brat. I could still devour your tiny brain even though I'm behind this seal."**

Naruto smirked. He said "No you can't. This seal is a masterpiece. Even with all your power, you wouldn't be able to get out of this."

The Kyuubi said **"You'll be surprised what I can do, little boy. For instance, when the Great 10-Tailed Demon was split into 9 parts, i got most of his power, allowing me to become King of Demons. This seal that your bastard father put in place drains my demonic energy, but doesn't make it into human chakra. I can manipulate what you take from me and use it to destroy your mind and release myself."**

Naruto said "You forgot to factor in one small part to that equation. I meditate regularly. I increase my mental defenses a lot faster than this seal drains your energy. By the time this seal drains enough of your energy to break through those shields, you'll be too weak to do anything about it except lie down and wait for your execution."

The Kyuubi said **"That's what you think. I might not have my body anymore, but I can still control my power enough to defeat you."**

Naruto said "You can control your power, but it will never even be able to hurt me. My father made sure of that."

The Kyuubi snarled at Naruto. He said **"You're just like that whore of a mother of yours. You always think you know everything."**

Naruto's eyes narrowed quickly. He transformed into his golden haired state, and fired a huge blast of energy at the Kyuubi. It hit the Kyuubi in the head, knocking him back and making him fall on his back. The attack didn't have enough power to do permanent damage, but it hurt like a bitch.

Naruto's eyes were bluish-green. But as Naruto glared at the Kyuubi, his eyes started turning more into a mixture of red and bluish-green. And the longer Naruto stared at the Kyuubi, the stronger the red got until his eyes looked partly purple. Naruto said in a distorted voice "Don't you EVER TALK ABOUT MY MOTHER LIKE THAT!"

The Kyuubi started laughing. He said **"I knew it. I knew you couldn't keep a hold of it. Soon that power will start to take over Naruto. You'll start to crave the power, then you'll turn into the thing your father never wanted you to be. You'll turn into me. HAHAHAHA!!!!!"**

Naruto's eyes widened. He looked into the water to see that his eyes started turning red. At first, his eye color was a mixture of bluish-green, and red. But the red started taking over. Naruto closed his eyes and started calming himself down. Eventually, the red color receded. He turned to the Kyuubi and said in a lower voice "I'll never turn into you. That, you can bet on."

Naruto then got out of his head to leave the Kyuubi in solitude. As he pulled out of his mind, he started breathing heavily. Naruto thought to himself _'Maybe I'm not as safe as i thought. I need to control my anger or this furry bastard will take over completely.'_

Naruto then met back up with Hinata at her house and started training with her. As they were in the middle of training, Neji came out the back. He said "Hinata, some girl is here to see you. She claims to be from your Academy class."

Naruto and Hinata went to the door to see who it was. It was Ino. Hinata was puzzled. Why would Ino want to see her?

Ino said "Hinata, Naruto, I need your help."

Naruto said "With what?"

Ino said "I need to become a better ninja. I told you guys earlier that Daddy opened my eyes to a lot of things. They weren't just about my crush on Sasuke. He made me realize that if I didn't start training, I wouldn't last a year in the ninja business."

Naruto said "Just what the hell did he do that could have made you think over your life this much?"

Ino said "He went to the Ninja Records Center in the Hokage Tower and got me some files on other kunoichi. Kunoichi who became kunoichi all because of a guy, like i did. None of them made it past their first 5 months. They were either sold as sex slaves and never seen again, or they were raped and killed. Daddy said that if i didn't start training, not only would he pull me permanently from the Ninja Program, but he'll disown me.

"I need your help. You two train so much. Please, is there anyway you can help me?"

Naruto turned to Hinata and raised his eyebrow. Hinata gave him a small nod.

They turned back to Ino and Hinata said "Fine then. You can train with us."

Naruto said "Before you start jumping for joy, you need to know. We will train you into the ground. We've been training since we were 6 years old Ino. You've barely trained at all. We're gonna have to work really hard to get you back in the shape you need to be in."

Ino said "Okay then. I'll do anything. I want to make up for my mistakes these years."

Naruto said "We'll start tomorrow at 3 PM. For now, get some rest, you're gonna need it."

Ino left, ecstatic that they decided to help her. Naruto said "You think we did the right thing?"

Hinata started chuckling and said "Yes."

Naruto said "She's gonna damn near die trying to keep up with us."

Hinata said "It'll do her some good. She's been neglecting her training for a while and we need to kick her back into shape."

Naruto said "If you say so."

* * *

(With Sasuke)

Sasuke was at a dark place. He was with Danzo and training. Danzo had been training him in Jutsu that the village wouldn't approve of Sasuke knowing. "When the time comes, you will need these Jutsu. Remember that Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke had used his Sharingan to learn the moves quickly and had been practicing them since. Sasuke had also been given a Nodachi by Danzo to learn how to use.

Overseeing his training, Danzo was happy. Sasuke's power had the potential to bring the entire planet to their knees. Sasuke would be their leader, and Danzo would be Sasuke's leader. Sasuke would be a mindless husk waiting for Danzo's orders like a trained dog.

* * *

(With Ino)

Ino was by no means an idiot. Well, she was before when she was chasing Sasuke, but now her eyes had been opened. She realized that she had been stupid and had been trying to break out of the weak, stupid blonde stereotype that she forced herself into.

Her dad opening her eyes was not good. What she told Hinata and Naruto was actually a lie. Her dad didn't show her files, but memories. Her dad, Inoichi Yamanaka, worked at the Torture and Interrogation Department. He sometimes had to delve into the minds of people to get information. Along the lines, he ran into rape victims and wife beaters. He still had their memories locked into his head. When he saw how Ino was acting, he decided to show her.

He showed her the memories of a woman named Katrina Romanji. Katrina was hopelessly in love with the Yondaime Hokage since she was a kid. She became a shinobi to get closer to him, but she wasn't put on his team. Her team went on a C-ranked mission and she was kidnapped. She was sold into slavery and wasn't seen for 10 years. Eventually, it was the Yondaime who saved her from slavery, but she was almost dead. Inoichi had to enter her mind to help her get over the traumatic years she had.

Another memory was of Yugaka Uchiha. He was fawned over by many women. He married one of his fangirls, named Rukia Gorachi. Rukia was raped constantly by him and he frequently beat her. He put Genjutsu over her to bury her memories of the events. She said her beatings were her being clumsy and getting hit by pans or falling down the stairs. She said that the sex was consensual.

When he publicly beat her, Yugaka was arrested. Inoichi delved into his mind and saw all the times he beat and raped her. He decided to show his daughter those memories. When it was done, she was hunched over and crying her eyes out. Inoichi yelled at her "Did you see that? That'll be your future if you don't get your act together. I've been going too easy on you Ino. If you don't change your ways, I will ask the Hokage to permanently ban you from the ninja program and I will disown you."

When he said that, Ino knew that she had to get her act together. She just thanked Kami that Naruto decided to help her. She saw that Hinata only helped her because Hinata loved Naruto. Hinata didn't completely forgive her.

When she looked Naruto in his eyes, she saw that he completely forgave her. She didn't doubt that for a second. After everything that she did to him, he forgave her in a second. He even said he would take time out of his day to help her get over her problems. She felt that no matter what she did, she would never be able to repay him.

Ino decided to stop thinking about that and got back to training.

* * *

(With Naruto)

Naruto was at home meditating. Since he first met the Kyuubi, he realized that there was a pain in his chest. When he checked it out, he found out that it was demonic chakra. He thought that it was the Kyuubi's, but when he studied it further, he found out something else.

The demonic chakra had the same feeling as his own chakra.

The feeling of chakra is how you can distinguish it from other peoples' chakra. It was a different color than his own chakra, but it had the same feeling. That was his own chakra. Somehow, his body makes demonic chakra. The discovery was so traumatic that Naruto started meditating to suppress the demonic chakra.

At first, he thought that the transformation was coming from it. But then he felt that the transformation had nothing to do with the demonic chakra so he kept using the transformation. But he didn't tell anyone about the demonic chakra. Not even Hinata or the Third Hokage.

Naruto kept the demonic chakra his dirty little secret. He loved the Hokage like a grandfather and he was in love with Hinata. They didn't have a problem with him housing a demon, but becoming one? Naruto didn't know what their reactions would be, but he wouldn't have to find out. He would never tell them.

* * *

That's all for this chapter. This story isn't at the forefront of my mind right now, so sorry if it takes me long as hell to update. Anyway, you read right. Naruto's body produces demonic chakra. What does it mean? You'll have to wait until next chapter to find out.


	4. Tests, Tests, Tests

Naruto woke up earlier the next day to get in some last minute training before Kurenai's test. He had a lot of steam to work off after meeting the Kyuubi the night before. Somehow, the Kyuubi always found a way to piss Naruto off. Whether it was causing him stomach pains, giving him nightmares, or talking about his mom, the Kyuubi was a master at pissing Naruto off. He needed to take off the stress before it started to affect his fighting.

A couple minutes into training, he was joined by Shino. Shino never actually said much, but he was a good listener and sort of a psychiatrist to his friends. They would come to him with their problems, and he would help them work through it. Actually, it was Shino that Naruto went to about the demonic chakra.

He didn't actually mention that his body produced demonic chakra, but he said that he felt something weird in his body, like another chakra source. Shino told him about how the feeling of chakra is unique to individuals, which helped Naruto realize that his body made demonic chakra. Also, using that same advice, he realized that his transformation didn't actually have anything to do with his demonic chakra.

Ever since, Shino has been a reliable friend for Naruto and Hinata. The fact that he trusted Shino made being on a team with him easier. He thought that it would be better to team with Shino and Hinata then two people he didn't trust like Sakura and Sasuke.

Shino joined in on Naruto's training, learning the same fighting style that Naruto used. When Naruto originally asked him about it, Shino said "It seems logical to make myself a jack of all trades. In case my Kikai bugs are deemed useless in some way, Taijutsu seems like a good fall back plan."

When Hinata joined in, they decided to start a three way sparring session. They didn't use any weapons, Ninjutsu, or strong attacks. It was just a friendly spar, and they still had a test to take later so they couldn't afford to injure one another. While they were training, Kurenai walked to the training ground. She said "That is the type of determination that I'm looking for in my students. You all arrived here early to get in some training. You have no idea how many Genin don't train."

Hinata said "Trust us Kurenai-sensei, we do."

Kurenai chuckled at Hinata's comment and said "Anyway, we have something to do here. I have to give you all a test. This test has a sixty six percent fail rate. Of the nine teams that graduated from the Academy yesterday, only 3 of those teams will go on to become Genin."

Hinata said "Ok then, what's the test?"

Kurenai said "I have two bells. Your objective is to take the bells from me before 8:45 A.M. It's 8 A.M now, so you only have 45 minutes. Whoever doesn't have a bell will go back to the Academy. Begin!"

The three Genin immediately disappeared from sight. In the treelines, they all met together. Shino said "I find it highly illogical that they would split up a three man cell like that. I believe that there's an ulterior motive to this test."

Hinata said "There must be. But what is it?"

Naruto continued Hinata's thoughts. "They can't possibly expect a single Genin to take on a Jounnin and take something from them, can they?"

Shino's eyebrows rose and he said "They don't. I think the objective of this test is to work together. One genin can't defeat a Jounnin, but three working together might."

Naruto said "That seems right. So now, let's make a plan."

* * *

30 minutes later, Kurenai was still sitting in the middle of the clearing, waiting for her team to try and attack her. All of a sudden, she heard a sound behind her. After years of experience, she recognized the sound to be shuriken flying through the air. She jumped forward, narrowly avoiding the blades. Before she could collect herself, she had to dodge another volley of kunai. Looking to where they came from, she didn't expect to be blasted from behind.

Turning to the source of the ki blast, Kurenai saw Naruto there smirking. He made guns with his hands, then focused ki into the tips of his fingers. He yelled out "Bullet Shot!"

Naruto then shot off bullet after bullet of ki at Kurenai. Kurenai rolled on the ground to dodge the blasts, but wasn't expecting a blast to hit her in the side. Kurenai quickly jumped to her feet, only to hear a cry of "Spirit Shot!"

Looking to her left, she narrowly avoided the black orb. When she looked at where the attack came from, there stood Naruto and Hinata. Kurenai said "So you two decided to work together?"

Naruto said "As if I'd go on with my dream without my girlfriend by my side."

Kurenai said "And what about Shino? You're just gonna leave him to repeat the Academy."

Hinata said "Now what gives you that idea? This was Shino's plan."

Kurenai's eyes widened. "What did you say?"

Naruto said "Shino volunteered to repeat the Academy so that we can further our own ninja careers."

Kurenai angrily said "And you accepted?"

Hinata said "Why wouldn't we? We get to stay together. Besides, we work better as a duo, not a trio."

Kurenai was in disbelief. She always knew Hinata as a kindhearted person. How could she just accept a friend repeating the Academy and holding off on their dreams so that she can stay with her boyfriend! Kurenai blew her top. "How dare you do that to Shino! He's your friend! He has been by your side for months, and you accept him putting his career on hold just so you and this idiot here can play Grab-Ass. I thought you were truly his friend."

After hearing Kurenai's tirade, Hinata started smiling a little and narrowing her eyes, looking like she was trying her hardest not to laugh. After a few seconds, she couldn't hold it in anymore. Hinata started rolling on the ground laughing. Kurenai's anger was replaced with surprise at Hinata's actions. She said "What are you laughing about? This is serious. You're gonna let Shino repeat the Academy so that you can be with your boyfriend."

Hinata said "Like I said before, this entire thing was a plan by Shino."

Kurenai quizzically said "What are you talking about?"

Naruto said "This was Shino's plan. We all decided to work together to fight. Pass or fail, we'll do it as a team. We fought you so that Shino's Kikai bugs could get all over your body. We had to keep you talking so that you wouldn't notice them draining your chakra. Now that you're low on chakra, your Ninjutsu and Genjutsu are useless now."

Kurenai smiled a little at Naruto's statement. So they realized the true reason of the test. Now all they had to do was either take the bells or last until the time limit. Kurenai slipped into a Genjutsu stance and said "I still have Taijutsu."

Shino walked from out of the tree line to stand beside Naruto and Hinata. He said "Not to be cocky, but it's very cocky illogical to think that you can defeat all three of us in Taijutsu alone."

Kurenai said "I think I can handle myself fine."

Kurenai charged the three Genin, which turned out to be a wrong move. Naruto charged forward, making his two team members wait behind him. Naruto ran forward with his arm drawn back, ready to punch Kurenai's lights out. Right before he reached her though, Hinata cried out "Heaven's Wrath!"

Naruto took that as his cue to take to the skies. He flew up, missing the attack by centimeters. The attack hit Kurenai in the chest, knocking her backwards. Naruto smirked in the air. _'The old Feint and Blast. Gets them every time.'_

Naruto dropped to the ground, being right behind Shino and Hinata as they charged Kurenai. Hinata opened up with a Gentle Fist palm to the stomach, which Kurenai avoided. Shino went down for a sweep, which Kurenai dodged. Naruto jumped off of Shino's back and twisted, adding a lot more force to his heel kick to Kurenai's cheek.

Hinata quickly went over to Kurenai, but couldn't get a good hit on her. When she cried out for help, Shino answered her call. While those two were keeping Kurenai busy, Naruto activated his transformation and dashed past them, quickly snatching the bells just as the bell rang.

Naruto quickly showed Kurenai that he had the bells, astounding her. She said "How did you get them that quick?"

Naruto said "I have my ways."

Kurenai said "So now, what will you do with them."

Naruto said "This test was all about teamwork. It was to see if we would be able to put our differences aside for the good of the mission. So, I choose to give the bells to Hinata and Shino."

Hinata said "I won't accept it. You deserve this bell a lot more than I do."

Shino said "I will not accept this bell either. Like Naruto said, pass or fail, we will do so as a team. Since one of us has to fall, we all will."

Kurenai said "Wow, you guys are the most grown-up 12 year olds I have ever met. Most would only look out for themselves."

Naruto said "It just goes to show you to never underestimate us because of our age. So Sensei, do we pass or fail?"

Kurenai said "You pass. Meet me here tomorrow and we can hopefully start missions."

Shino said "What do you mean by 'hopefully?' We have just passed your test Kurenai-sensei, haven't we?"

Kurenai said "Yes you have. And you all passed with flying colors. But I have to meet with the Hokage and talk to him about the team. And I have to talk to the other Jounnin and plan things with them, like joint training days or spars, just some small stuff. Don't worry, most likely we'll be doing missions."

The three genin nodded at their new senseis instructions. They stayed at the training ground for the rest of the day, practicing and honing their abilities. While they were training, Kurenai went to the Hokage's office at noon to attend the Jounnin sensei meeting.

When she got there, it was the time for the meeting to start, but like always, Kakashi Hatake was holding the meeting back because he hadn't arrived yet. So for two hours, Kurenai was stuck listening to the Jounnin grapevine. The topic was mostly her student Naruto.

Sadly, this didn't surprise Kurenai at all. She had been a Jounnin for two months, and the only thing they ever talked about was 'Kyuubi brat' this or 'Demon boy' that. It seemed like they could never shut up about Naruto. But with Naruto showing his true abilities in his fight with Sasuke a couple weeks earlier, it seemed that the discussions had gone completely out of hand.

It scared many of the Jounnin because they feared that Naruto was the Kyuubi reincarnated and that he would use that powerful transformation and new abilities to kill them. Others believed themselves too strong to be bested by what looked like a fancy Henge and fake moves.

Kurenai didn't form an opinion from what she heard on the grapevine. She knew that you could never actually trust the grapevine to accurately deliver news. So she decided to hold judgment until she met him firsthand. And now, after fighting him, she knew that those special attacks of his and Hinata's were anything but fake.

At two o'clock, Kakashi walked into the room. The Hokage said "Well, well, well thanks for coming Kakashi, two hours late."

Kakashi said "I'm sorry Hokage-sama, but I got lost on the road of life."

Sarutobi said "Kakashi, if we weren't low on ninja right now, I would drive a kunai through your head. If you are ever late to a meeting with me again, I will do just that, shinobi forces be damned."

Kakashi visibly paled and said "Yes Hokage-sama."

The Hokage said "Okay then, now that Kakashi is here, let's get this mission started. In order of team number, state whether they passed or fail."

A random Jounnin stepped forward and said "Team 1, Fail."

"Team 2, Pass."

"Team 3, Pass."

"Team 4, Pass."

"Team 5, Fail."

"Team 6, Fail."

Kakashi stepped forward with pride and said "Team 7, Pass."

Kurenai stepped forward and said "Team 8, Pass."

The Jounnin of Team 1 hopped up and said "There's no way that team passed."

Team 5's sensei stepped up and said "Yeah, they had the failure of a Hyuuga heiress and that Aburame."

Team 6's sensei also stepped up and said "Not to mention that de-"

The Jounnin of Team 6 was rudely interrupted by a kunai going through his skull, courtesy of the Sandaime Hokage. He said "Moving on. Asuma, how did Team 10 do?"

Asuma Sarutobi, son of the Sandaime Hokage, stepped up and said "Team 10 passed dad."

Sarutobi sighed. He said "It looks like we have 18 new ninja that passed their tests."

Kakashi said "But there's only enough in the budget to support 9. What do we do?"

Sarutobi said "Simple, team battles to see exactly who will go on."

Kurenai said "If I may interject Hokage-sama, how will we choose? If you let the Genin-hopefuls choose, they'll all go after who they think is the weakest."

Asuma said "And if you let the Jounnin choose, they will go after who they are most biased against, mainly Kurenai's team."

Sarutobi said "I know, and to be honest, I don't think that I can accurately match up the teams either."

Kakashi said "Why not Hokage-sama?"

Kurenai answered Kakashi's question. "Because there's a chance he could arrange them to be biased towards Naruto."

Sarutobi said "Correct Kurenai-san. Which is why who they choose shall be at random. Jounnin sensei of the failed teams, you all can leave. And call in the ANBU cleanup unit to take this body away, it's starting to stink up my office."

The Jounnin bowed, said "Yes, Hokage-sama," and left. Seconds later, the ANBU appeared in the room and took the body and cleaned up the mess, making it look like no one died in the Hokage's office.

Sarutobi said "Now where was I? Oh yeah, you all will be choosing randomly. Now, draw straws. Shortest goes first."

Sarutobi pulled out 6 straws from his desk, one of which was shorter than the other 5. The six Jounnin remaining came forward and pulled a straw. Asuma pulled the shortest one, so Sarutobi said "Fist up, Asuma."

Asuma stepped up to the front of the Jounnin and said "What do I do, dad?"

Sarutobi pulled out his brush and 6 pieces of paper. He then wrote the names of the remaining six Jounnin on the slips. He said "You all will throw kunai at the name slips. I will attach them to the wall and you will throw kunai at them. Whatever name it lands on, that's whose team yours' must fight tomorrow at noon in the amphitheater. After each kunai toss, I will change the order the names are in so that you can't just memorize their positions.

"First up, Asuma. Now use your hitai-ate to blindfold yourself."

Asuma pulled his hitai-ate down over his eyes, blocking his sight. Sarutobi quickly attached the names onto his wall, telling Asuma to throw the kunai. Asuma threw the kunai and it landed on 'Satoshi Haruke', the name of Team 2's Jounnin. Asuma said "It seems like my team is fighting yours in the tournament tomorrow Satoshi."

Satoshi walked up to Asuma and shook his hand, saying "Best team tomorrow wins."

Sarutobi said "Okay then, draw again."

The remaining four Jounnin drew straws and the winner was Kimiko Tojo, the female Jounnin leader of Team 3. She blindfolded herself with her headband and pulled out a kunai, ready to throw. After switching up the order of the names, Sarutobi gave Kimiko the order to throw. Kimiko threw and hit the name 'Raimundo Himura.', the Jounnin leader of Team 4.

Seeing who was left, Sarutobi sighed. _'It seems that it was fate that those two would fight again. I just hope that Naruto can stay safe again without killing the Uchiha.'_

Sarutobi said "It seems that Teams 10 and 2, 3 and 4, and 7 and 8 shall fight each other. The three teams that win shall become Genin. The other three shall repeat the Academy."

Kakashi said "Are you sure about this Hokage-sama? Kurenai-san's team has Naruto Uzumaki and mine has Sasuke Uchiha. Both of them have abilities that would be valuable to the villages' safety."

Sarutobi said "I know Kakashi, and if I had it my way, they both would be in the Shinobi Corps. But I can't change the rules for anyone. The Shinobi world is cutthroat, and one of those two will not make it. I'm sorry, but that's the way it will be."

Kakashi said "I understand Hokage-sama. I just hope that this decision doesn't come back to bite us all in the ass."

Sarutobi said "So do I Kakashi. Anyway, you all are dismissed."

The 6 Jounnin disappeared in puffs of smoke, leaving Sarutobi in the room alone. Kurenai puffed to her training ground, hoping to start from there and find her team. Luckily for her, they were all still there training.

Kurenai said "Team 8, come here."

The Genin quickly dropped what they were doing and rushed over to Kurenai. They all stood in a line in front of her, waiting for her to give them instructions. Kurenai said "There's been a small problem with your graduations. You remember how I said that only 3 of the 9 teams shall go on to become Shinobi?"

At their nods, Kurenai continued. "Well, 6 teams passed their tests. Teams 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, and 10. That means that 3 teams must be weeded out. The Hokage told us to report to the Konoha Amphitheater at noon tomorrow. Teams 3 and 4 will fight, Teams 10 and 2 will fight, and we are left to-"

Naruto interrupted Kurenai, saying "Spank the Uchiha's ass? You can count on me being there."

Hinata quickly smacked him across the back of his head, saying "Shut up."

Kurenai said "Well, I wouldn't have said it that way, but Naruto is right. We're left to fight Team 7. If I were you guys, I would try to come up with a battle strategy with what we know about those three."

Shino said "Team 7 consists of Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, and Kiba Inuzuka. Sakura is academically in the top third of our graduating class. She knows the information from the schools' textbooks, but she has poor study skills, which reflected in her test scores."

Hinata said "But Sakura hardly ever trains. I remember asking her to train with me one day, she said 'But I'll sweat,' and ran away."

Naruto said "Yeah, these are team battles, which would mostly mean physical abilities. That's something that she doesn't have at all and that Hinata-chan has in spades."

Hinata said "I can take care of Sakura, no problem. All I have to do is start fighting her, then point behind her and say 'Is that Sasuke undressing?' She'll turn around and I can nail her in her back easily."

Kurenai said "Hinata, don't disrespect your fellow Genin like that." While Kurenai said that, it was easy to tell that she was holding in her laughter.

Shino said "Despite your rude-"

Hinata interjected "But true."

Shino continued "Comments, Sakura can be easily handled by Hinata. You guys agree?"

When they both agreed, Shino said "Next up is Kiba. Kiba is one of the fastest of our graduating class. The Inuzuka Clan is known for their attacks in conjunction with their animal partners, but I don't believe that Kiba has achieved this with Akamaru."

Hinata said "Yeah, but Kiba is completely hormone driven."

Naruto said "He leaps before he looks and he's overconfident as hell. Shino, you can easily beat him by making it a game of wits."

Shino said "I don't like entering games like that with unarmed opponents."

Naruto muttered "Like I haven't heard that one a hundred times."

Naruto spoke up "But still, you can easily take him out."

Shino said "Agreed. So I'll take Kiba."

Naruto said "Which leaves me with Sasuke."

Shino said "We know that Sasuke has activated his Sharingan, but with that transformation, Naruto is quick enough to evade it. The transformation also increases Naruto's abilities by a lot, so much so that they completely dwarf those of Sasuke's. Naruto, can you enter that transformation whenever you want?"

Naruto said "Hell yeah. Team 7 is as good as dead."

Shino said "Not necessarily. It has been a while since Sasuke found that transformation of his own. He might've found out how to activate it at a moments' notice like you."

Naruto said "No way. When I first found it out, it took me months of practice to enter it _again._ Then it took me even longer to enter it at will. I practically spat on everything Sasuke holds dear-

Hinata interjected again "Practically. You pissed all over it."

Naruto said "Ignoring that. I had to piss on everything that Sasuke held dear to get him to go into that transformation. Like mine, it must've been activated by a lot of rage. It'll take him a long time to master a form like that. A lot more than just a few weeks."

Shino said "Regardless, we should be prepared for any eventuality. If he does enter it, I noticed that it increases his speed, but not as much as your ability. Also, I noticed that after the battle, Sasuke looked to be in pain for a week."

Naruto said "When I first entered the transformation, it put a huge strain on my body. His transformation will probably do the same to him. After entering it for so long though, my body is used to the strain."

Hinata said "So maybe you can just outlast him. Eventually, the pain from the transformation will knock him out. You have more stamina and control than him."

Shino said "Precisely my idea. With him being inexperienced with his powers, you have a clear advantage. As long as you stay out of his reach and don't get hit, you will win."

Naruto said "Oh yeah, Team 7 is toast."

* * *

(Next Day)

After quick morning exercises, Team 8 went to the amphitheater to compete. On the way there, they heard people whispering about the fights. The fights were supposed to occur discreetly, but it seemed that many of the Jounnin couldn't keep their mouths shut. The more they walked, the more apparent it became that everyone in town knew about their battles. And today, it seemed that the amphitheater would be packed.

They heard people making bets on the matches, with Team 7 unsurprisingly being the favorite. They didn't hear a single vote for Team 8. Hearing the people, Naruto thought _'Oh, so the fact that me and Hinata-chan are Rookie Shinobi and Kunoichi of the Year hasn't made it to the streets yet, but our fight with Team 7 is known within the hour. That's Konohagakure no Sato for you. Only hears what it wants to.'_

On the way, they saw a perfectly square boulder. The three spotted it, but paid the brick no attention. All of a sudden, the brick started to move with them. Shino noticed it, but still didn't say anything. Naruto noticed it, and knew who it was, but he decided to just ignore it. After a while though, the constant shuffling and piss poor stealth skills started to piss him off. He turned to the boulder and said "You can come out now, Konohamaru. There's no holes in boulders, and none of them are perfectly square."

Inside the boulder, Konohamaru muttered "Damnit," and came out from under it. He said "Hey boss, can you help me with my training? I'm trying to make my energy beams wider, but I keep making them the same way."

Naruto said "I can't Konohamaru, I'm busy."

Konohamaru said "Doing what?"

Naruto said "Haven't you heard? Me and my team have to fight Sakura, Kiba, and Sasuke today to become Genin."

Konohamaru said "Can you teach me later then?"

Naruto said "If me and my team aren't doing anything, yeah."

Konohamaru said "Cool! I'll try to train some before you teach me."

With that, Konohamaru ran to a training ground. Naruto said "That kid is a handful."

Hinata said "He sort of reminds me of a black haired, black eyed person I know?"

Naruto smirked and said "Hinata-chan, I think you left out 'drop dead sexy' in your description."

Hinata got into a thinking pose, and said "Now that you mention it, Sasuke is drop dead sexy."

Naruto's eyes widened and he yelled "What?"

Hinata started giggling at his face. Hinata said "I'm just messing around. I was talking about you."

Naruto said "Oh," and deflated. Seeing this, Shino said "Hinata, you forgot to say stupid as hell."

Naruto mock-laughed and said "Funny Shino. Now can we cut out Shino's weak attempts at making a joke and get to our fight. I got a lot of things to do today which don't involve losing my job before I even get it."

The trio quickly arrived at the amphitheater to see that the theater was already packed. Naruto looked around the stands and saw the Kages' booth, with the Sandaime sitting there. Naruto waved at the Sandaime, who made a hand motion at Naruto to come up there. Naruto quickly ran to the stairs and arrived at the Kages' booth. The Hokage quickly dismissed his guards to talk to Naruto privately. The Sandaime said "Naruto, what do you intend to do about Sasuke?"

Naruto said "What do you mean? I got this in the bag."

The Sandaime said "Are you so sure about that? You've become a lot more powerful these past few weeks, how do you know he hasn't also?"

Naruto said "He hasn't gained enough power to match me."

Sarutobi sighed and said "Y'know that cockiness will get you killed Naruto."

Naruto said "Well, to quote Hiruzen Sarutobi 'It's only cockiness when you can't back it up.' When I transform, it increases my speed and reflexes by a lot. By the time he does the handseals for any Jutsu, I would've seen it and avoided it. That transformation of his makes him too slow to beat me."

Sarutobi said "For your sake Naruto, I hope you're right."

Naruto said "Is that all you wanted to say?"

Sarutobi said "There's something else. Watch out today. There's a lot of money on Sasuke to win. Some of the more desperate people would do anything for that money, even sabotage you and your team."

Naruto said "I'll watch out you old geezer."

Sarutobi said "I hope you win Naruto. I have a lot of money riding on you."

Naruto smirked and said "Gambling, Sarutobi? What would the village say, seeing their fearless leader gambling on a childs' fight?"

Sarutobi said "They won't say anything if the know what's good for them. Now get down there and kick some ass."

Naruto mock-saluted the Sandaime and said "Will do, geezer-sama."

Naruto ran down to the field and rejoined with his team, passing on Sarutobi's warning. After a few more minutes, they started. The proctor of the exam, a guy wearing regular Jounnin attire with a bandana and a toothpick in his mouth came down. The proctor then started speaking, projecting his voice so the entire amphitheater could hear him. "My name is Genma Shiranui, and I am the proctor of the tournament. Before you now, you see 18 Genin. Each Genin has passed the test their Jounnin instructor has given them, but only three Genin teams can move on to become true Genin of Konohagakure no Sato. Today, these teams will face each other in previously selected, randomly chosen matches."

Genma then turned his attention to the Genin. He said "I will now call up the first two teams. If your team isn't called, you must go to the waiting area to wait for your battle."

Genma started projecting his voice again. "Now, Team 2 consisting of Rukia Kuchiki, Ichigo Kurosaki, and Sado Yosutora. Your battle today is with Team 10, consisting of Shikamaru Nara, Ino Yamanaka, and Choji Akimichi. The other teams must report to the waiting area for their match."

The other teams quickly made their way to the waiting area. Genma said "Team 2, are you ready?"

Rukia, the spokesperson for her team, said "Yes, sir."

Genma turned to Team 10 and said "Team 10, ready?"

Shikamaru lazily said "Yeah."

Genma then yelled "Hajime!" and jumped on the wall, making his way to the Hokage's booth to avoid the fighting. While Teams 2 and 10 were fighting each other for their jobs, there was another smaller fight going on in the waiting room.

Sasuke walked over to Team 8's area and said "You better enjoy this loser. This is the closest you'll get to becoming a Genin."

Naruto said "What makes you think that?"

Sasuke smirked and said "Simple, your teams' match is with me and my team. And I don't plan on losing today."

Naruto said "What a coincidence, neither do I. So one of us has to change our plans. I hope you factor 'being carried out of here on a stretcher' into them."

Sasuke gave Naruto an evil look and said "Only if you factor in 'being carried out in a body bag.'"

Naruto narrowed his eyes at Sasuke and said "Is that supposed to be a threat?"

Sasuke said "More of a promise. I told you before that you would pay for mocking the Uchiha name. Now we've come full circle."

Naruto said "And I told you that if you use deadly force on me, I'd kill you."

Sasuke smirked and said "So this means that one of us isn't leaving this arena. Maybe if I feel like it, I'll put some flowers on your grave."

Naruto said "And I'll piss all over yours. You haven't beaten me before, you certainly won't do it now."

Sasuke said "There's a first time for everything."

Sasuke then whispered to Naruto so that only Naruto could hear "Even a demon has to die sometime."

Sasuke then turned around and left, a big smirk on his face. Naruto was too surprised to react to it. Hinata came forward and said "What's the matter, Naruto-kun? What did he say?"

Naruto turned to Hinata and said "He knows about the Kyuubi."

Hinata gasped and said "But how? No one is supposed to tell."

Naruto said "The Hokage isn't omniscient. He can't control everyone from telling the secret."

Hinata said "We gotta make sure that he doesn't tell anyone."

Naruto said "I'm gonna have to tell the Hokage. He has to know about this."

Naruto was turning to go up the stairs, but Hinata grabbed his arm. She said "You're not leaving without me."

Shino appeared on Naruto's side and said "I'm here with you too."

Naruto said "Shino, do you know?"

Shino said "I've known for a few years now. But I don't see how it affects anything. That beast is separate from you. You're nothing like it."

Naruto said "Thank you Shino. Now, let's go to the Hokage."

Naruto, Hinata, and Shino left the room, leaving the other teams alone. Sasuke pulled out a headset from his pocket and turned it on. He said "Master, the birds are migrating to the Grand Bird."

The Master on the other line said "Good job Sasuke. We'll ambush them on their way."

Sasuke smirked. All according to plan.

* * *

Team 8 was traveling through the hallways of the amphitheater, going to the Hokage's throne. On the way, they heard everyone cheering about the match that was going on. The team just ignored it and continued on the path to the Hokage's seat. While they were going there, they ran into 3 ANBU who were standing in the way.

Team 8 was close to passing the ANBU, when one of them pulled out their sword. He said "I cannot allow you to go further."

Naruto said "And why not?"

The ANBU said "Your death has been ordered."

The ANBU's comment put Naruto on edge. The ANBU ran at him, trying to cut him. Naruto jumped backwards, missing the blade. Hinata quickly blasted the ANBU with a ki blast, sending him backwards.

Shino let loose his bugs and quickly charged forward to engage an ANBU. The ANBU swung his sword down, expecting to skewer Shino, but he didn't count on Shino replacing himself with the bug clone behind the ANBU. The ANBU's sword went through the bug clone and coated the sword and its' wielder in Shino's bugs. Shino quickly jumped on the ANBU's back and put him in a sleeper hold.

While Shino had the ANBU in a sleeper hold, another of the three tried to free him. Naruto quickly put a stop to that by running in front of the ANBU and engaging him in combat. The ANBU put its' sword away and engaged Naruto in a hand to hand fight.

The ANBU aimed a punch at Naruto's head, but Naruto ducked under it and dropkicked the ANBU in his left shin. The ANBU let loose a horrible scream and grabbed his shin in pain. Naruto got into a crouching position and tried to sweep the ANBU's right foot out from under him, but the ANBU jumped over it. When the ANBU landed, it landed on its' injured shin, sending pain throughout his leg.

Naruto jumped forward for a punch, but the ANBU jumped back before Naruto could land it. Naruto aimed a kick at the ANBU's chest, but the ANBU blocked it. Naruto sent a feint kick to the ANBU's head, causing him to block upward, leaving his chest open. Naruto quickly focused energy into his fingers and yelled out "Bullet Shot!"

Naruto shot off a flurry of Bullet Shots that all connected. Naruto then jumped forward, expecting to end the fight with a single punch. The ANBU ducked under Naruto's punch and did something that Naruto never expected he would do. He unsheathed his sword, and plunged it into Naruto's left shin.

Usually the sword wouldn't do any damage against Naruto's skin. Naruto's skin was strong enough to break kunai without breaking. But the sword the ANBU had was special. It was designed by his master to cut Naruto's skin. It was very tough and could cut through most stone like a hot knife through butter. Also, the ANBU was proficient in wind chakra. He was told to focus wind chakra around the blade and stab Naruto in the leg with it.

Naruto yelled and grabbed his leg in pain. The ANBU said "Payback's a bitch, ain't it?"

Hearing Naruto's yell, Hinata quickly hit the ANBU she was fighting in his heart and ran over to Naruto's side. The ANBU started doing handseals and yelled out "Fire Style: Grand Fireball Jutsu!"

Hinata narrowed her eyes in anger at the ANBU. She yelled out "8 Trigrams: Air Palm!"

She thrusted her hand towards the ANBU, sending an invisible force through the air. The Air Palm connected with the ANBU's Grand Fireball and blew right through it. The attack went forward and struck the man right in the face, doing minor damage to his skull and brain, knocking him out. Shino quickly rejoined with Hinata and said "Quick Hinata. You have to get your Mystic Palm Jutsu ready. When I pull out this sword, you have to heal it quick or he can bleed out."

Hinata said "But Shino, I don't think I'm good enough to heal something like this. Maybe the doctors here can-"

Shino said "Hinata, most of the village hates Naruto because of what he holds in his stomach. He's told me that doctors have tried to poison him before, so I know he told you too. Do you seriously think that the doctors will heal Naruto if they aren't forced to by the Hokage? We have to do our best to stop the bleeding right now and get the Hokage to help us with healing the rest later."

Hinata said "Okay. …Mystic Palm Jutsu!"

Hinata's hands were surrounded in a green aura. She started moving her hand towards Naruto's wound. Shino quickly grabbed a sword from one of the fallen ANBU and put the hilt in Naruto's mouth. He said "Bite down on it."

When Naruto did, Shino turned to Hinata and said "On three you heal, okay? One….Two…Three!"

Shino quickly grasped the sword and pulled it out. Naruto's screams were muffled by the sword hilt as Hinata started healing it. Hinata did all that she possibly could, which wasn't much, but luckily she stopped the bleeding. Hinata said "I'm done. Naruto-kun, you have to stay off that foot."

Naruto said "But how will I fight?"

Hinata said "I think their plan was for you to not be able to."

Naruto said "What?"

Shino said "Hinata is right. You're faster than Sasuke, so if they take out your leg, you're gonna be practically immobile, which makes Sasuke's job of defeating you easier for him."

Naruto angrily said "So Sasuke's behind this? I'll kick his ass!"

Shino said "No you won't Naruto. Sasuke didn't sabotage you in person, so he can't be charged with it. If you go back there and start a fight with Sasuke now, we'll be disqualified for sabotaging a team."

Naruto said "So what can we do?"

Shino said "We'll just have to fight them and hope for the best."

Naruto said "Fine then. Let's get to the Hokage and tell him the news."

10 minutes later, they arrived at the Kage's Booth. Sarutobi quickly cleared the room for their private conversation. Sarutobi said "What happened to Naruto?"

Naruto said "We were attacked by three people claiming to be ANBU."

Sarutobi said "Where?"

Shino said "A hallway 3 flights down and on the side of the amphitheater where the Waiting Rooms are."

Sarutobi quickly snapped his fingers, and three ANBU appeared. He told them to go check it out. The ANBU disappeared. Sarutobi said "What happened during the attack?"

Shino said "They went immediately for Naruto, giving me reason to believe he was their target. I believe that those people were working on the side of Sasuke. They knew that Naruto was faster than Sasuke, so they tried to injure one of his legs to make Sasuke's fight easier for him."

Sarutobi said "That does make sense."

Shino said "There's something else, Hokage-sama. In the waiting rooms, Sasuke said something to Naruto that caused us to believe that he knows about the Kyuubi no Kitsune imprisoned in Naruto's stomach."

Sarutobi said "How did you learn of it?"

Shino said "It was easy to figure out with everyone calling Naruto a 'fox demon'. Anyway, Sasuke said 'Even a demon has to die sometime.'"

Sarutobi said "You're right. This is serious. But I can't have him killed for knowing it. If he tells anyone I can, but since was told, he can't be persecuted. I'll get a few ANBU to watch over him."

At that moment, Sarutobi's ANBU poofed back in. They said "Hokage-sama, there's nothing there. All we found were a few traces of blood, but no bodies."

Sarutobi said "That is all."

The ANBU then departed. Sarutobi said "It seems that it was a black ops mission. They were extracted before they were found out."

Shino said "So we have no leads as to who they were hired by or working for."

Sarutobi said "It seems we don't. I'll keep looking into it. I'll find who did this, I promise you. But for now, I think you all should get back to the waiting room. Your turn is coming up soon."

Hinata said "But Naruto is injured. We could lose."

Sarutobi said "I'm sorry Hinata, but if you don't go out there, you WILL lose."

Hinata narrowed her eyes in anger and punched the wall next to her. She said "I understand, Hokage-sama."

Shino, Hinata, and Naruto then left the Kage's booth to go to the waiting room. When they arrived, they went over to one of the seats and rested Naruto there. Hinata kept healing Naruto's leg, hoping that she could do more to ease the pain to get him into a fighting state.

Shino said "This will cause a slight change in our plan. Naruto can't take on Sasuke alone. I shall take Sakura and Kiba. Hinata, you back up Naruto."

Hinata said "Are you sure you can do it, Shino?"

Shino gravely said "I'll have to."

While they were doing all of this, Sasuke narrowed his eyes in anger. _'Damnit! Those Root agents were supposed to kill bug boy and Naruto's bitch. Now we have to fight them all. _

'_But the girl is trying to heal Naruto's wound, so she'll be weakened. And the dobe looks like he's injured badly. Fuck! I wanted to fight him while he was at full power. That way there could be no distinction who was stronger.'_

Sasuke turned back to watch the match between Team 3, consisting of Yusuke Urameshi, Kazuma Kuwabara, and Shizuru Kuwabara fighting against Team 4, consisting of the brothers Edward and Alphonse Elric, and Riza Hawkeye.

After another 10 minutes, Team 3 were declared the winners after Yusuke cleverly used his Spirit Gun attack on Alphonse Elric, forcing his older brother Edward to jump in front of the blast. With Edward out of the way, the others were easy pickings.

After their match, the proctor Genma came back out and said "Now, will the last fighters come down. Team 7, consisting of Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, and Kiba Inuzuka, shall be fighting Team 8, consisting of Naruto Uzumaki, Hinata Hyuuga, and Shino Aburame."

Team 7 came out of the waiting area and to the arena to widespread cheers. Their entire team was basking in the glory of being the crowd favorite. Team 8 came out with Hinata and Shino carrying Naruto on their shoulders. They were immediately met with boos from the entire crowd. Naruto thought _'Everyone booing me, giving me death glares, looking like they're one step away from killing me. S.O.P.'_

Team 8 carried Naruto to the center of the stage, where Team 7 was waiting. Genma said "Team 7, ready?"

Kiba yelled "Hell yeah! This'll be a cinch!"

Genma turned to Team 8 and said "Team 8, ready?"

Hinata narrowed her eyes and said "Does it matter?"

Genma ignored her question and yelled "Hajime!"

Genma jumped back, allowing the two teams to attack each other. Shino quickly created a bug clone. The bug clone ran towards Sakura and pulled its' fist back to attack her. She stood there, saying "I know that this is nothing but an illusion, Shino. You can't defeat me that easily."

Sakura waited until the clone was in range, then punched it in the head. The bug clone burst into Shino's Kikai bugs. They got all over Sakura, causing her to let loose an ear-rattling scream, scream about bugs being on her, then fall unconscious 10 seconds later from fear.

Seeing this, Shino sweat-dropped. He thought _'If it was anyone _but_ Sakura, I would say that it was too easy.'_

But Sakura's unconscious state did provide Kiba cover. Kiba charged Shino and hit Shino across the face. Shino went flying, but was able to recover and land. Shino looked at Kiba to see him charging again. This time Shino waited until the last minute, analyzing everything about Kiba's attack, then dodged. Kiba for his part, didn't notice the two female Kikai bugs that landed on him and Akamaru.

Shino thought _'That'll get them eventually. The females on Kiba and Akamaru will attract the male Kikai bugs that are out after they suck Sakura dry. All I have to do is wait and draw Kiba over there.'_

Shino then started dodging Kiba's attacks. Shino ducked under a claw by Kiba, then punched Kiba in the chest, then the head, knocking him back a little bit. Shino saw Kiba run at him, aiming an attack at Shino's chest. Shino quickly ducked and spun, sweeping Kiba's feet out from under him and making him fall on his face. Shino stood back up, then said "Is that the best you have, Kiba?"

Kiba said "This is just the tip of the iceberg!"

Kiba charged forward, just like he did before, except this time he was aiming to take Shino's legs out from under him. Shino bent his knees a little, then waited until Kiba reached him. He jumped over Kiba's strike, then put his foot on Kiba's head and lightly pushed down, causing Kiba to hit the ground again.

Kiba got up from the attack to more of Shino's taunting. "The brilliant Jutsu creator Albert Einstein was quoted saying 'Stupidity is defined as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.' I guess by his definition, you are an idiot."

Kiba said "You think you're so smart? I'll clean your clock right here!"

Shino said "If you think you can, I'd suggest you do it right now."

Kiba rushed forward, trying to hit Shino, but Shino was able to dodge every one of the attacks. Shino said "Kiba, your moves are an open book to those who know how to look. You easily broadcast your moves to your opponent. You need to work on your Taijutsu more."

Kiba said "I'm the best of our class at Taijutsu. No one topped me."

Shino said "Now you're deluding yourself."

Kiba said "Say something about me again? I dare you!"

Shino said "Your mother has a job, and is a respected member of the community."

Kiba narrowed his eyes at Shino and said "No one talks about my mother that way!"

Kiba bent his knees, concentrated his chakra and yelled "All Fours Jutsu!"

Kiba then got a coating of chakra over his body, his canine teeth were lengthened, and he got a more feral look to his body. He took off towards Shino, faster then before. Shino quickly jumped out of the way, causing Kiba to charge headfirst into a wall.

Shino thought to himself _'From what I saw of their battle before, Sasuke now has just about as much chakra as Naruto. My Kikai bugs could drain him for an hour and he'd still be fine. Taking care of his teammates would be better.'_

Shino unleashed the rest of his swarm to drain Kiba and Akamaru, who was next to Kiba trying to wake him up. Shino instructed the ones draining Sakura to start draining Kiba after they were done.

* * *

Naruto said "Hinata-chan, let me go."

"But Naruto-kun, your leg isn't completely healed yet."

Naruto said "It'll have to do."

Naruto rushed Sasuke, with Hinata right behind him. Sasuke saw Hinata charging with Naruto and thought _'So he brings his little bitch along to help. He's starting to become more and more like Kiba everyday.'_

Sasuke activated his Sharingan and rushed Naruto. Seeing that Naruto's shin was injured, Sasuke decided to focus the majority of his attacks there. With Hinata at his side, Naruto didn't give Sasuke an inch. Everytime Sasuke went for Naruto's leg, Hinata went for a gentle strike fist. Many of Hinata's attacks were seen by Sasuke and dodged. _'With these eyes, you can't get one past me, bitch.'_

Naruto said "Hinata, back up and ready the Feint and Blast."

Hinata jumped back and positioned her right arm parallel to the ground. She used her left hand to grab her right wrist and started focusing energy into her right hand. Her hand started giving off a white light that temporarily blinded those that looked directly into it.

Naruto charged forward, trying to keep as much pressure off of his left leg as possible. But Naruto still had to absorb a lot of pain. _'If I don't hold Sasuke during the blast, he could see it with his Sharingan and dodge. I have to keep him from moving.'_

Naruto flipped over Sasuke and held his arms in a full nelson. Naruto yelled out "Hinata, Now!"

Hinata narrowed her eyes and fired off her attack, yelling out "Heaven's Wrath!"

Hinata's attack rocketed from her hand towards Sasuke and Naruto. Sasuke started flailing around in Naruto's grasp, trying anything to get out of the grip. Naruto quickly kicked Sasuke forward and into the way of the blast.

Sasuke quickly focused chakra throughout his entire body, enhancing his skin's durability many times over. The attack detonated, kicking up a huge smokescreen. Naruto started taking a few steps back, hoping to give himself some room if Sasuke wasn't done for.

Before he knew what happened, Naruto was hit with a Grand Fireball Jutsu. Naruto jumped out of the flames before any permanent damage could be done to him, but in the haste of jumping out of the flames, he forgot about his injury. He accidentally landed on his left leg, sending a bunch of pain shooting up his leg, which caused him to collapse to the floor. Naruto screamed out and thought _'Damnit! How can I be so stupid?'_

While Naruto was holding his leg, Sasuke dashed out of the smokescreen and started throwing kunai at Naruto. Naruto quickly rolled out of the way and got to his feet. Sasuke kept close to him, not giving Naruto any time to come up with a plan. Hinata saw their fight from a distance and started gathering energy into her hand. She eventually saw an opening. She yelled out "Spirit Arrow!"

Out of her hand came a glowing arrow. It sailed through the air and hit Sasuke in his back, causing him to drop to his knees. Naruto charged forward and tried to kick Sasuke, but Sasuke was easily able to roll out of the way. Sasuke got up to his feet, but felt someone grab him from behind.

Naruto said "Gotta love Shadow Clones, right? Now it's time for you to lose."

Naruto held his right hand with his arm parallel to the ground, his fingers spread, and his palm facing Sasuke. He started forcing energy into his right hand, making it take on a black glow. A black ball of energy started growing in Naruto's hand. The ball grew bigger and bigger each second. Naruto smirked and said "This attack should seem familiar to you Sasuke. Spirit Shot!"

Naruto's attack sailed towards Sasuke. Sasuke quickly focused chakra through his body, enhancing his skins' durability many times over again. The attack easily destroyed the Shadow Clone Naruto created, but it kicked up another smokescreen. Naruto jumped to the right and moved towards Hinata, thinking that two would fare better than one. When the smoke cleared, Sasuke was still standing there, but part of his shirt was blown off. Sasuke still looked unharmed. He said "Is that the best you got?"

Hinata's eyes widened in shock. She said "B-b-but how? That was a direct hit. You shouldn't be standing right now."

Sasuke said "Maybe those worthless techniques of yours aren't as strong as you think." _'I can't let another one of those attacks land again. I'm already down to half my chakra alone because I had to enhance my skin's durability twice to protect against those attacks..'_

Naruto said "Worthless? I didn't see you saying that when you were knocked out from them."

Sasuke said "As I've said before, I've grown stronger than I was at that time. For example, this!"

Sasuke closed his eyes and looked down. Naruto said "Is that it? Looking to the ground."

Hinata said "No, he's concentrating."

Sasuke opened his eyes and looked at Naruto. In Sasuke's eyes were complete rage, anger, and a desire to kill. Naruto muttered "Oh shit."

Sasuke's body started changing again. His hair started levitating. Sasuke bent his knees and put his arms to his waist. He said "You think that before was anything? Here's my true power!"

Suddenly, a huge yellow aura erupted from Sasuke's body, blowing grass, dirt, pebbles, and other small things like that into the wind. The spectators were lucky they were so high up, none of the floating debris got in their eyes. Naruto looked forward at Sasuke and thought _'Sasuke found out how to enter the transformation at will! …No, he didn't. If he did, it wouldn't have taken that long. He must've recreated the rage from that moment before. Now, he's in this new transformation. The only thing I have on him is speed, and now that's kaput because of my leg. This is not good!'_

Sasuke's muscle mass doubled at least. His muscles got so big they tore through his shirt and stretched his pants. Sasuke's hair changed from the way it was before and settled into a new style. It also changed color to a shade of blue a few shades darker than sky blue. Sasuke also grew in height. While all of this was going on, Sasuke's deranged laughter filled the stadium. _'I haven't accessed this form since I fought Uzumaki before. My chakra capacity has at least quadrupled. I have more than my original max. Uzumaki and his bitch are mine now.'_

When Sasuke's laughter died out, so did most of the winds' force. Sasuke was standing there in the same form as he had in his fight with Naruto earlier. Looking at Sasuke's transformation, Naruto got a strange feeling again. The same one he got before when he first saw Sasuke's transformation. It was a feeling in him that told him to fight Sasuke or run away.

Naruto said "I was wondering when you would bust that out."

With a thought, a clenching of a fist, and a small glare, Naruto transformed into his form. Naruto rushed forward, noticeably faster than before. He went in for a punch, only to be smacked across the face by Sasuke's fist. Naruto easily recovered and ran back to fight Sasuke. He started throwing punches at Sasuke. A few of them connected, but for the most part, they all missed. Sasuke grabbed Naruto's hand when Naruto went in for a punch and lifted Naruto off the ground. He then punched Naruto in the chest, causing n Naruto to be sent flying through the air. Naruto landed on his back 10 feet away from Sasuke. Sasuke said "Is that really your best? You'll lose then, Uzumaki."

Naruto stood up, carefully avoiding putting weight on his left leg. He said "Nope. I'm just testing you. And you failed."

Naruto quickly ran forward and ducked under Sasuke's fist. He went for a punch to Sasuke's chest, but Sasuke disappeared. Naruto looked everywhere for Sasuke, but Sasuke couldn't be found. He turned around, and saw Sasuke about to punch him. Naruto was about to jump back, but he heard a voice yell "8 Trigrams: Air Palm!"

Sasuke was suddenly sent rocketing to his right and hit the wall of the stadium. Naruto saw Hinata come to his side. She said "You didn't think I would let you fight Sasuke all alone, did you?"

Naruto said "I kinda hoped you would."

Hinata said "You won't get that lucky."

Naruto was about to say something back, but they heard the rocks shifting. Looking back, Sasuke was getting up. He was brushing debris from the wall off of his body, not looking tired at all. Sasuke said "So I get the pleasure of ending the dobe and his bitch, huh? I feel so honored."

Sasuke disappeared again, putting Hinata and Naruto on high alert. Hinata muttered "Byakugan" and activated her doujutsu. She stood there, then yelled "Jump!"

Naruto and Hinata jumped in the air, just as Sasuke appeared behind them and punched the ground they were standing on. His punch caused a huge crater to form, shocking everyone watching the match. Hinata said "That is a lot of raw power. And he's fast."

Naruto said "But without discipline, raw power is harmless."

Hinata said "He put a beating on you the last time you two fought."

Naruto heard everyone gasping at them. Looking to his left, he saw everyone pointing at him and Hinata. He said "What? What the hell do you want?"

He heard Sarutobi's voice behind him. Sarutobi said "Naruto, I don't think they're used to seeing two Genin hovering in mid-air."

"Huh?" Naruto got a confused look on his face until he looked down and saw that he was flying. He said "I forgot we figured out how to do this."

Hinata groaned outloud and said "Damnit! I feel like a dumbass now."

Naruto said "What's up?"

Hinata said "Why didn't we think of flying as fixing your leg problems earlier?"

Naruto got into a thinking pose, then said "True. It would take all the pressure off of my leg."

Hinata said "But if I remembered earlier, we probably could've beaten Sasuke already."

Naruto said "It doesn't matter. Right now, you remembered and that's what counts. As long as we're up here, Sasuke can't-"

Naruto's words were cut off by him being tackled out of the sky and crashed into the ground. Hinata's eyes widened. She muttered to herself "He ran up the wall, then kicked off of it at the exact angle to tackle Naruto. That takes some serious leg power."

Sasuke slammed Naruto into the ground with a force that could rip through steel. The sound of the impact deafened the cheers of the crowd. Sasuke let loose a primal yell and started punching Naruto in the face. Hinata quickly flew down and started focusing energy into her hands like Naruto did before. She shot off the attack, yelling "Spirit Shot!"

The black ball of energy sailed forward and detonated against Sasuke's back. Sasuke was blown forward, but he was easily able to recover. By the time he recovered, Naruto was back up, levitating a few inches in the air. Naruto and Hinata both charged Sasuke. Sasuke slipped into a defensive stance, getting ready to attack either one. Both of them threw smoke bombs at Sasuke, decreasing his eyesight.

Through the smoke, Sasuke saw Hinata and Naruto charge him. Sasuke started attacking both of them, only for his fists to go through them and for him to hear a yell of "Spirit Shot 10X!"

Sasuke was shot from both sides by the attacks, causing the smokescreen around him to increase. Naruto and Hinata both flew into the air above the smokescreen, waiting to see what happened.

When the smoke cleared, Sasuke was standing there without a scratch on him yet again, but his aura was weaker. Naruto narrowed his eyes in rage. He took off towards Sasuke, yelling "Why won't you die?"

Naruto charged Sasuke and opened with a fist. His fist went across Sasuke's face, but Sasuke didn't even tilt his head. Naruto's eyes widened at the pain he felt from his fist. _'That never happened before. I've never felt pain from punching anything. What is happening?'_

Sasuke smirked and kicked Naruto in the chest with all his force, forcing Naruto to drop to his knees. Sasuke used one hand to grab the back of Naruto's head, then smashed his knee into Naruto's head, causing Naruto to rocket to the opposite wall. Sasuke smirked and disappeared, reappearing in Naruto's way. He kicked Naruto farther into the air. Sasuke jumped into the air after him.

Hinata, seeing this, thought _'I have to help.' _Hinata started charging her energy, then shot off a Spirit Shot. Sasuke saw this, thought _'This bitch has interfered for the last time!'_

Sasuke focused chakra through his arm, enhancing its' strength. Sasuke swatted Hinata's Spirit Shot away, surprising her yet again. Sasuke brought his hands above his head, hoping to hit Naruto with a double-handed axe-smash. Sasuke brought his hands down on Naruto's head, only for his attack to pass through air. Sasuke saw a shadow above his head, and looked to see Naruto kick him in the face and down to the floor.

Naruto placed his hands next to his right hip and focused energy through his hands. The energy bathed the entire amphitheatre in green light. Naruto said "Once again, Sasuke. Welcome, to Super Naruto's, Konoha Cannon!"

Naruto turned, thrusting the attack forward with great force. The green beam sailed forward and hit Sasuke. When Naruto cut the attack, almost immediately, the dust and smoke kicked up by the attack was blown away by Sasuke. Sasuke yelled "I have had enough of you! NO MORE HOLDING BACK!"

Sasuke's yelling caused his aura to shoot up into the sky. His pupil and iris started retracting in size until they were only half as wide as they were before. Naruto felt the feeling grow in his body, causing him to have the urge to charge Sasuke in a mad, primal fury. As that feeling grew, he felt his demonic energy start to rise. It had been rising since the start of their match, and now it was reaching its' boiling point.

Naruto quickly took a few deep breaths, trying to calm himself. _'Calm down, Uzumaki. Losing your cool right now would do nothing but hurt you.'_

After calming himself, Naruto took off after Sasuke, with Hinata behind him. Naruto engaged Sasuke in a flurry of punches, moving as quick as a blur to most of the audience. Naruto tried to punch Sasuke in the face, but Sasuke grabbed his hand and threw him into the wall. Hinata, seeing a gap in Sasuke's defenses, quickly rushed forward and slammed him in the chest with a Gentle Fist strike.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed and he looked Hinata right in the eye. He quickly punched her in the stomach, causing her to fall to her knees. He started doing handseals and yelled out "Temporary Paralysis Jutsu!"

Sasuke's attack connected with Hinata completely, freezing her for 10 seconds. Sasuke started doing a lot of handseals very quickly, yelling out "Chamber of Pain Jutsu!"

Hinata easily fell into Sasuke's illusion. Hinata let loose a yell and dropped to the floor, obviously in pain. Hearing her cry, Naruto quickly unearthed himself from the wall and ran to Hinata. He quickly twisted and kicked Sasuke in the face, knocking him away from Hinata. Naruto said "Hinata-chan, is there something wrong?"

Hinata kept whimpering, not able to form sentences through the pain. Naruto turned to Sasuke and yelled "What did you do to her?"

Sasuke smirked and said "I put her in a Genjutsu. It works on her nerves. Anything she feels will be multiplied thousands of times over. Everything from the feeling of the ground on her body to the breeze that's blowing right now. She's feeling everything thousands of times more than regular. Even better, the more chakra she uses to try and distort the Genjutsu, the stronger it becomes. The only way out of it is if I let her out. Now that bitch will be out of our match."

Naruto narrowed his eyes at Sasuke, feeling his rage and anger take over his body. Naruto felt his demonic power rise in his body. This time, Naruto thought _'Fuck it! My body produces this shit, now I'll use it.'_

Naruto looked Sasuke dead in the eyes and said "You hurt my Hina-chan. Now you'll pay!"

Naruto felt for the demonic energy in his body, and grasped it. He brought it out, flooding his body with the power. The sudden flooding of demonic energy caused a lot of dust to kick up around Naruto's body. The power was so strong that some of the people in the stands were feeling the effects of it.

The chakra put the ninja who fought in the Kyuubi attack on edge. The chakra's demonic essence brought back memories and nightmares they could barely repress. Sarutobi stood up and moved to the edge of the Kage Booth, wanting to pay attention to what happens next.

Shino quickly realized that this match would get ugly. He grabbed Sakura and Kiba and ran. He ordered his bugs back into his body, fearing for their lives. After getting them, he went back to the waiting room.

Naruto's aura turned a vibrant orange. His eyes turned a mixture of mostly purple with a little green. Naruto gained a red coating of chakra around his body. The chakra coating formed claws on his nails and feet, and a tail.

The crowd, seeing these transformations, were about to start yelling, but at a snap of Sarutobi's fingers, the ANBU appeared in the front of all the spectators with their swords pulled out, as if they were daring anyone to say anything. Luckily, the people got the hint.

Naruto narrowed his now slitted eyes at Sasuke in pure anger. He said "Round 3 begins NOW!"

Naruto instantly disappeared. Sasuke looked around for Naruto, but couldn't find him. All of a sudden, he felt someone punch him. Sasuke got up from the punch to see Naruto standing there. Sasuke said "How did you get that fast? You weren't anywhere near this fast before."

Naruto smirked. He said "Simple. Look at my left leg. Where your 'friend' stabbed me."

Sasuke looked at Naruto's leg. At first, he didn't see anything, but Naruto said "You don't see? How about I give you a close-up."

Naruto rushed forward on his feet, shocking the hell out of Sasuke. Naruto jumped up and kicked Sasuke right across the face, knocking him away. When Sasuke got up, he looked at Naruto's leg again to see some of the red aura going into his leg. Sasuke said "It's healing! But how?"

Naruto said "Simple. I usually have an accelerated healing factor, but this form enhances it farther than it's ever been. Even if putting weight on my leg is damaging it, this chakra is healing it faster than I can damage it. See, my leg is almost 100 percent right now."

Sasuke said "It doesn't matter, dobe. I can still beat you."

Naruto smirked and said "Oh really?"

Naruto disappeared again. Naruto reappeared in front of Sasuke, giving him an uppercut. While Sasuke was flying through the air, Naruto stretched out his hand, causing the red aura on his hands to reach forward and grab Sasuke. Naruto then pulled him down and slammed him into the ground. Naruto dashed towards Sasuke and jumped high into the air. Naruto then stretched out his leg, and flew down in a direct course for Sasuke.

Seeing the attack, Sasuke rolled out of the way, making Naruto hit the ground, creating a crater almost as big as Sasuke's. Sasuke got on his feet and charged Naruto. Naruto waited there until Sasuke tried to punch him. Naruto blocked the attack, with one arm. Naruto said "You've left yourself open, Uchiha scum."

Naruto focused some of his demonic chakra through Sasuke's body, causing Sasuke to become immobilized. Sasuke tried and tried to move, but couldn't. He yelled "What did you do to me?"

Naruto smirked and said "As long as my energy is in your body, you can't move. You can try as much as you like to move, but you will fail, until I want you out of it."

Naruto put his hand 9 inches from Sasuke's body. Naruto focused energy in his palm, creating an attack that gave off a blood red color. The ball started growing, but Naruto forced it to contract to 3 inches wide. Naruto then started focusing his demonic energy into it, causing the ball to grow to be 6 inches wide. Naruto said "This is a brand new attack I've made on the fly. I hope you like it Sasuke. Kyuubi's Rage!"

The attack sailed forward and hit Sasuke point blank. The attack caused a huge smokescreen to kick up, blinding the actions of the fighters to the audience. When the smoke cleared, the audience saw Naruto holding Hinata bridal style in his arms while she was waking up. Sasuke was knocked out cold on the ground with a huge scorch mark on his chest.

When Hinata woke up, she said "What happened?"

Naruto said "Sasuke put you in a Genjutsu. It intensified anything you felt a thousand fold."

Hinata said "Damnit! I should've been able to break that."

Naruto put Hinata down and said "Don't worry about it. Sasuke basically blabbed everything about that Genjutsu to me. We'll be ready next time."

Hinata said "Oh well. Anyway, thanks for saving my ass again, Naruto-kun. I guess I owe you some ramen."

Naruto smirked and said "No you don't. I was so worried about you when I heard you scream. Just please, stay safe for me Hinata-can. If something happened to you, I don't know what I'd do."

Hinata said "Worrisome idiot."

Hinata leaned up and kissed Naruto on the lips. Naruto was surprised by the kiss, but returned it. They were in pure bliss. They didn't even hear the proctor announce their teams' win. After they kissed, they both left the arena, not paying attention to anyone.

Sarutobi laughed at their antics. "Kickass lovebirds. I never thought I'd see the day a 12-year old could be both a lover and fighter. Oh well, time to get paid."

Sarutobi quickly left the Kage Booth to collect his money for the bet.

* * *

A couple hours later, Sasuke woke up in the hospital. Danzo was sitting by his side. Sasuke said "What happened? Your team was supposed to kill the bitch and bug boy, not hurt the dobe. He was mine."

Danzo said "And despite my assassin stabbing the boy in the leg, you couldn't defeat him."

Sasuke said "Because that bitch was helping him. If your damn assassin did his job, I'd be a genin and the dobe would be dirt."

Danzo said "Calm yourself Sasuke. You will get your revenge on the Uzumaki boy. Today was just a minor setback. You will become a genin. One way or another you will."


	5. Maternal Care

"Oh yeah! The first rookie team to get a C-rank! We are awesome."

"You know it, Urameshi! We're gonna be kickin' ass and taking names in no time!"

"I expected this from Yusuke, but not you Kazuma."

"Oh shut up, Shizuru. What do you know anyway?"

"I know that a bunch of ninja teams never live through their first C-rank."

"Tch. Shut up."

This was the conversation happening between the newly christened Team 3. Ever since their team battle against Team 4, Team 3 had been on the fast track to success. Within their first two weeks of being ninja, they were on a C-rank mission. During their battle with Team 4, the Hokage personally commended them for their teamwork. And seeing as D-rank missions were supposed to foster teamwork, which they had in spades, they could bypass D-rank missions and go straight to C-rank, even if the Hokage didn't particularly like it.

So here they were, escorting an old man back to the Land of Mountains as their first C-rank. On this team was the 12-year old Yusuke Urameshi, the self-proclaimed "Master of Reiki." Yusuke had pure black hair and brown eyes. He was wearing a yellow sleeveless shirt with blue karate pants. He had on a white karate belt holding it together with blue shoes on.

Yusuke came from the Urameshi family. The Urameshi family was well known for using pure Spirit Energy, also called Reiki, to fuel their legendary attacks. Yusuke had been somewhat of a prodigy of his class. He learned a special move called the "Spirit Gun" when he was only 6. Most Urameshi clan members weren't able to learn that until they were at least 14. This caused Yusuke to get somewhat of a big head.

Next on the team were Kazuma and Shizuru Kuwabara. Kazuma was 12 years old while Shizuru was 14. Kazuma, or "Kuwabara" as most people called him, was a roughneck. He loved to fight all the time and never took "no" for an answer. His family, the Kuwabaras, also used Reiki to fuel their attacks, but instead of long range attacks like the "Spirit Gun," they used mid to short range attacks like the "Reiki Sword." He was also best friends with Yusuke, even though you couldn't tell with how they treat each other.

Shizuru was the brains of Team 3. She was the only person to ever call Kazuma by his first name and get away with it unscathed. She also had more power than her brother, she just liked being a support fighter more than a front line fighter. She was also very overprotective of her brother, deciding to hold off on going to the academy for two years until her brother was old enough to go in. She was the only one on the team who didn't wanna take a C-rank mission that early, but she was easily outvoted.

Shizuru, Yusuke, and Kuwabara were all walking down the road calmly with their sensei in the back. The old man was calmly walking down the road, happy he got four ninja to escort him back. He heard that many people got ambushed by bandits on the path he was taking. With all these ninja on his side, there was no way he could be hurt.

Oh how wrong he was. What he didn't know was that there was something _far_ worse than bandits on the road.

While they were walking, they heard a rustling in the bushes. Shizuru immediately got a bad feeling from it. Her and her brother had very heightened sixth senses, but hers was stronger than his. Shizuru felt that something bad would happen soon. Kuwabara got that feeling also. They showed their feelings on their face, alerting Yusuke that something was wrong. Yusuke had a horrible sixth sense for danger, which made his teaming with the Kuwabara's so much better. Shizuru closed her eyes, trying to use her Reiki to 'sense' where the next attack was coming from. Shizuru opened her eyes quickly, pointed to a tree and said "Urameshi, fire right there."

Yusuke grabbed his right wrist with his left hand and made a fake gun with his hands. He pointed his finger at the point that Shizuru told him to. He focused all his Reiki to the tip of his finger and yelled out "Spirit Gun!"

Out of his fingertip, a blue spherical blast of energy erupted from his finger and hit something, knocking it out. Before they could see who it was, a kunai came from behind him. Kuwabara yelled "Reiki Sword!"

Out of the palm of his hand came an orange sword. Kuwabara jumped in front of Yusuke and cut the kunai in half. Kuwabara started looking around the place, searching for some hint of the enemies. Shizuru looked to their client, only to find him gone. Shizuru turned to their sensei to see him dead also. Shizuru thought _'This isn't good at all. Sensei's dead and the client disappeared. If they could get the drop on sensei like that, what chance do we have?'_

Shizuru got another bad feeling and turned around only to see a man in the air with a sword unsheathed. Shizuru yelled "Reiki Javelin!"

Shizuru created a Reiki Sword like her brother, but it wasn't as wide and twice as long. She pulled it back and threw it like a real life Javelin. The attack pierced the man's arm, leaving him wide open for Yusuke's Spirit Gun. The Spirit Gun blew the mans' body to cinders. Yusuke smirked and said "One down."

Kuwabara said "I don't know how many left to go."

Shizuru said "We gotta get out of here. They're attacking from the shadows. We're sitting ducks out here."

Yusuke looked around and saw a ninja rushing up beside him. Yusuke quickly pointed at him and fired off a Spirit Gun, only for the attack to go through a clone. Yusuke muttered "Damnit" and started concentrating on the battle. _'I only got one more Spirit Gun left. It's the strongest of the four, but if I waste it, I'm screwed.' _

Out of the ground burst one of the attacking people. Yusuke quickly fired off his last Spirit Gun round, hoping for a direct hit. The problem was that the man replaced himself with a log. Yusuke's attacks quickly incinerated the log and flew forward, right into Kuwabara. Kuwabara let loose a yell of pain and hit the ground.

"Kazuma/Kuwabra!" came the shouts from Shizuru and Yusuke respectively. They both ran over to Kuwabara and kneeled next to him. He was bleeding badly, the result of Yusuke's strongest Spirit Gun shot. Before anything could be done, they all heard a yell of "Ninja Style: Temporary Paralysis Jutsu!"

All three ninja were briefly paralyzed and unable to move. Three ninja dressed completely in black came out and decapitated all of Team 3. The three then left, arriving at their base later. When they got there, a voice from the darkness said "How did it go?"

One of the three ninja said "Master, every member of Team 3 were exterminated."

The voice said "What happened to No. 45523?"

One of the ninja said "My lord, he was killed in the battle."

The voice continued "I trust his remains have been dealt with?"

The same ninja said "Yes, my lord."

"Good. Now, dismissed."

The three ninja left, leaving the owner of the voice alone with his thoughts. _'Ah, everything is going well. Team 3 is defeated, leaving room for another team of Ninja to take their place. I'll make sure that team is Sasuke's. Like I told him, his defeat at the Genin selection Tournament was a minor setback at most.'_

Kurenai arrived at Team 8's training ground at 8:00 A.M, the time she designated for them to arrive there. When she arrived, she saw that they were already there training. Kurenai called her team forward to her. She said "Guys, I have bad news."

Hinata said "What happened?"

Gravely, Kurenai said "Team 3 has been killed."

Naruto's eyes widened in shock. He said "What happened to them?"

Kurenai said "They went on their first C-rank mission yesterday. They were ambushed and killed. Their Jounnin sensei was killed too."

Shino said "That is…unfortunate."

Hinata said "You mean fucked up."

Kurenai said "Their funeral is gonna be held in a few days. I thought you guys would want to know."

Shino said "What will happen to their spot?"

Kurenai said "What do you mean?"

Shino said "Konohagakure's budget can only support nine new ninja. Three of them were just killed, and Konohagakure needs all the ninja it can get. What's gonna happen to those three spots?"

Kurenai said "I don't know. If I had to guess, they would be given to one of the failing teams from the Genin matches."

Hinata narrowed her eyes a little and said "I smell something funny. I don't think it's a coincidence that the crowd favorite lost, then another team was taken out."

Kurenai thought about Hinata's statement, and said "You might be on to something right there. It does sound like a huge coincidence."

Shino said "It would seem suitable to conclude that the people that attacked us three at the stadium were the same ones that executed Team 3."

Hinata said "It seems that Sasuke has some friends in shady places. But something doesn't add up though."

Naruto said "I think I know what you mean. Because of me, we were the ones the crowd hated the most. And Sasuke wants to kill me. Shouldn't we be their targets instead of Team 3?"

Shino said "I thought the exact same thing. But we are in the village. If we were attacked, everyone would know about it soon and ANBU would start chasing them."

Kurenai said "But outside the village, the ANBU won't be able to respond quick enough. The killers will have enough time to get away."

Naruto said "So it wasn't a fact of who the crowd hated most, it was just whoever could be killed the easiest."

Shino said "Sadly, yes. And since they left the village, they were easy targets."

Naruto narrowed his eyes in anger. He said "That is so unfair. They didn't do anything wrong."

Kurenai said "I'm not gonna sugarcoat it for you Naruto. Sometimes good people die for no good reason. Some bastard just saw them as a stepping stone to the top, so they took them out. There's nothing we can do Naruto, except watch out ourselves so that we don't end up as a statistic."

Naruto said "I never thought I'd say this, but my job sucks."

Kurenai said "I know how you feel Naruto."

(2 days later)

At the funeral for Team 3, it showed a photo of Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Shizuru all posing. Right next to it was a picture of their Jounnin sensei, smiling as if he didn't have a care in the world. Seeing their faces all smiling and happy made Naruto sad. They looked so happy in the pictures, but that could easily end in a heartbeat.

Naruto was sitting behind the Urameshi Family, offering his condolences to Yusuke's mom. Sadly, Yusuke's mom sat in her seat staring forward, in almost a coma-like state. She didn't acknowledge anyone or anything.

Kuwabara's and Shizuru's mom was sitting down crying her eyes out. Those kids were her life, now they were gone. Hinata tried to comfort their mom, but she didn't say anything back. When it came time for them to put flowers on the grave, Naruto stood up with a white rose in his hand. He placed it in front of the pictures, then walked to the top of the coffin. Naruto thought _'The people who did this to you will pay. They can't just play with peoples' lives like this.'_

After the funeral, Naruto went home and laid his head down on his bed. Naruto felt a familiar tug on his conscience and knew that it was the Kyuubi. Experience told Naruto that if he didn't answer soon, it would start to hurt like hell. So Naruto delved into his mind and went to the Kyuubi's cage. He said "What do you want now, you old geezer?"

The fox got up from its kneeled position and stretched out as much as the cage would let him. He said **"What do you mean? You're the one who came here. I didn't call you."**

Naruto said "Yes you did."

The fox said **"I didn't call you."**

A voice that came from one of the corners of the room said "I called you."

Naruto looked over to see a woman walking from the darkness. She looked to be about 5'6" with red hair and green eyes. Naruto looked at her and said "Who are you?"

The Kyuubi though, blew a gasket. He jumped forward, stressing the bars of the cage and yelled **"YOU! Not you again. I thought I saw the last of you when I killed you when this worthless flesh bag was born. You're lucky I'm behind this cage. If I wasn't, I would devour your body and destroy your soul."**

The lady smirked at the Kyuubi and said "You would do that to your own little girl? It's official, you're the worst dad ever."

The Kyuubi yelled **"You're no daughter of mine. No daughter of mine would run away to this worthless world and get herself infected with the seed of some degenerate half-breed."**

The woman narrowed her eyes in anger. She disappeared and reappeared inside the Kyuubi's cage. She kicked the Kyuubi in the face, then disappeared under him and landed an uppercut in his chin. She looked at the Kyuubi writhing on the ground and yelled "Never talk about Minato-kun like that! The only reason I'm keeping you alive is so that Naruto-chan will completely absorb your power and make it his."

The lady flew out of the Kyuubi's cage and landed next to Naruto. She said "I'm sorry you had to see that Naruto-chan."

Naruto said "I'm alright. You wouldn't believe how many times I wanted to do that to old gramps over there."

The lady sighed loudly and said "So when did you figure it out?"

Naruto said "It was simple. Gramps over there never shut up about how since I'm his grandson, he can manipulate my demon chakra."

The lady said "So you know who I am?"

Naruto said "Yeah, I know." Naruto then walked up to the lady, hugged her, and said "Hello mom."

The lady hugged Naruto tightly and said "Hello son."

The Kyuubi had just gotten back up from being kicked by his daughter. He saw them hugging and thought _**'Yes, dear grandson. Relish this moment with Kushina while you can, because mark my words, I will destroy you. No one will take my throne from me.'**_

Naruto ended the hug with his mother and said "So I'm guessing you want to talk about something?"

Kushina said "Yeah, but first, let's go somewhere else. Dad's breath is starting to kill me."

Kushina put her hand on Naruto's shoulder and, in a flash of light, the sewer and cage disappeared, along with the Kyuubi. When the light disappeared, they appeared in a park that looked familiar to Naruto. Naruto said "Where are we?"

Kushina said "We're in Konoha State Park. Me and Minato-kun used to come here all the time when we were going out. It's one of my favorite places in the village."

Naruto said "Same here. I always used to come here and play with Hinata-chan when we were kids."

Kushina said "It seems this place has memories for both of us. But anyway, we gotta get down to business." Both mother and son went to a nearby bench and sat down. Naruto said "Alright, now I gotta ask. How are you here exactly?"

Kushina said "Well, I'm dead. When a demon dies, their soul is made human and their powers are stripped from them."

Naruto said "So you're human now?"

Kushina said "Yeah. But when I was alive, I was a demon. And I was a full demon too so that makes you half demon."

Naruto looked down at the ground and said "So I'm half-demon now? That is gonna be hard to explain to my girlfriend, but it does explain where my demonic chakra comes from."

Kushina said "Actually, it's called 'Youki', not 'demon chakra'. And that's why I'm here. You shouldn't be afraid or ashamed of being half-demon. Being half-demon means you have a lot of abilities and power. When you were born, something told me that I wouldn't be there to help you, so I sealed part of my soul in your body to help you learn to manage your Youki.

"Besides, if your girlfriend was a real friend she wouldn't care at all. You've been half-demon since you were born, so what difference does that make now? You'll still walk the same, talk the same, and act the same. You're not gonna spontaneously crave human flesh and kill people for sport, are you?"

Naruto said "You're right. Nothing has changed, except I now know how much power I really have."

Kushina said "And I'm gonna be there every step of the way to help you manage it."

Naruto said "Thanks, mom. But there's something I have to ask you. Was dad completely human?"

Kushina got a quizzical look on her face and said "What do you mean?" _'Could he have unlocked that transformation already?'_

Naruto said "You see, I can do this transformation thing. It turns my hair blonde and turns my eyes to a greenish-blue. And it makes me a whole lot stronger. I was wondering if you knew if dad could do something like that?"

Kushina's questioning look was dropped and she said "Naruto, honey, how long have you been able to do that transformation?"

Now it was Naruto's turn to have a questioning look on his face. He said "Since I was six, why?"

Kushina said "Show me."

Naruto tensed his fist, gritted his teeth a little, and transformed. Kushina started snickering, then started laughing her ass off. She was laughing so hard she fell to the ground and started rolling on the floor. Naruto said "What's so funny?"

Kushina, getting over the laugh but still giggling a little bit, said "Your father couldn't do that until he was 13."

Naruto said "What is this transformation anyway?"

Kushina said "Me and your father left scrolls for you with Sarutobi. Ask him when we're done talking."

Naruto said "Whenever I asked the Old Man who my family was before, he said he didn't know."

Kushina said "Because in our wills, we stated that you weren't to know until you were 13 or unlocked your abilities from both your father and me. So far, you only started on your fathers' ability, not mine."

Naruto said "But at the Genin Team Tournament I used my dem-Youki to heal myself and defeat Sasuke."

Kushina put her hand on Naruto's forehead and said "Think about what happened there, and I'll be able to see."

Naruto was confused, but did it anyway. As he thought about how he used the demon chakra to finish his match, his mother watched the entire thing like she was there in first-person.

After watching it, she said "You haven't done anything yet. That wasn't even the tip of the iceberg. I'll teach you what you need to know to get that scroll from Sarutobi."

Naruto said "So what are you teaching me?"

Kushina said "I'll teach you how to transform into your demon-human hybrid form. Don't worry, when you transform into it, you can change back."

Naruto said "So what do I have to do?"

Kushina said "You're close to unlocking it. That little chakra cloak thing you did was actually the first step. But you have to take it further. That time, all you did was focus the chakra to create an aura around you. This time, you have to call on your demon power, and force it through your entire body."

Naruto once again was confused. He said "What?"

Kushina said "Just try it. I'll coach you through it."

Naruto got off the bench he was sitting on, and sat on the floor while Kushina stood next to him. Naruto closed his eyes and started concentrating, while Kushina said "Now Naruto, reach for your Youki."

Naruto quickly felt for his chakra and called upon it. When he did, Kushina said "That was pretty quick Naruto. Now, where is the source of it? Where is the energy coming from?"

Kushina's question stumped Naruto. He never thought about that before. He said "Isn't it in my chakra system?"

Kushina said "No, Youki comes from a different place. Feel for the power, and determine where the source is."

Naruto started concentrating more, and eventually felt demonic chakra. He kept meditating, and found the source to be his gut. He said "It comes from the center of my gut."

Kushina kneeled down next to Naruto and put her hand on his gut. She said "From right here?"

Naruto said "Yeah."

Kushina said "That's the wrong Youki. That's dad's."

Naruto opened his eyes and looked at her. He said "But that's what I used in the Tournament."

Kushina said "I know. And did you feel like it was kinda hard to manipulate it?"

Naruto said "Yeah, it was. It was harder than using my own human chakra."

Kushina said "That's because it's not yours, so it's harder to make the chakra bend to your will. Since you're his grandson, it was easier for you to use it than if someone like Sarutobi used it."

Naruto said "So what do I do?"

Kushina said "Keep searching for it. You'll find it eventually."

Naruto closed his eyes and started concentrating more. Kushina said "How did dad's Youki feel?"

Naruto said "It felt…like lightning. It felt like it was crackling around everywhere and was hard to contain."

Kushina said "That's because it's not yours. Your Youki will feel like it's coming out in waves. Youki pulsates from it's source, and you have to find that source."

Naruto concentrated more, and ten minutes later he found the answer. He said "It feels like it's coming from my heart."

Kushina smiled and said "You got it. Now, focus that energy from your core, and flood your entire body with it."

Naruto did as Kushina said, and he felt the Youki flood his entire body and change him. When he felt the changes stop, Kushina said "You did it, son."

Naruto stood up and looked at himself. His hair grew out to go down to his shoulders. It changed colors also, becoming completely red, along with his eyes. His canine teeth were elongated and his nails hardened to become claws. He had two fuzzy fox-like ears on his head. He became taller and his body became leaner. His muscles were also bigger than they were usually.

But those were just the physical changes. His energy was through the roof. But it felt different. It wasn't chakra, and it wasn't ki. Naruto said "What is this power? It feels weird. I've used chakra and ki before, but nothing like this."

Kushina said "That's because it's not chakra or ki. It's Reiki. It comes from your soul, which is why I want you to be extra careful when you use it. I don't want you overexerting yourself and dying."

Naruto said "I'll be careful."

Kushina said "Now, in this form you use Reiki instead of ki, so if you use too much ki, your Reiki can also be used. Also, I'll be teaching you some Reiki techniques to up your arsenal."

Naruto said "Thanks mom."

Kushina said "But before you go, I'll teach you two attacks right now. The Spirit Gun, and the Reiki Sword."

Naruto said "Aren't those techniques Clan techniques of the Urameshi's and Kuwabara's?"

Kushina said "Yes, but you can still use them. It's all in that scroll I left you. Trust me."

Naruto said "Okay then, but how will you teach it to me? You said that when you died, all your Youki was made into chakra."

Kushina smirked and said "Yes, but you forget. Chakra is composed of ki and reiki. I can still use those techniques. And I can still teach them."

Naruto bowed to his mother and said "Thank you. Now, let's get to it!"

(The next day)

When Naruto woke up, he went to the Hokage's Tower first thing. He walked up the stairs and into the Hokage's office, not caring that he was interrupting a meeting between the Hokage and the Elders.

Naruto said "Old man, we need to talk."

Danzo turned to Naruto and said "Get out of here, boy. Can't you see your betters are talking?"

Naruto narrowed his eyes and said "First of all, you one-eyed slot machine, who the hell was talking to you? And second of all, the only person here who's better than me is the Hokage, and all I see is him talking to three old, tired out ass kissers. Now get the hell outta here. Me and the Hokage have something to talk about."

Danzo got out of his chair and said "Boy, you better watch who you're-"

The Hokage stood up and said "Danzo, Homura, Koharu, I think our time here is over. We'll finish our discussion later."

Koharu said "But-"

The Hokage glared at the three Elders, reminding them exactly why he was Hokage in the first place. He said "I said 'We're done.'"

The three left the Hokage's office, grumbling about disrespecting brats. The Hokage said "So tell me, Naruto. What is so important that you had to interrupt a meeting between me and the Elders on the Council?"

Naruto said "Oh please, you and I both know you hate talking to those three mummies."

Sarutobi said "…Touché. But still, what did you want to talk about?"

Naruto said "I need to tell you what happened last night. While I was at home, I felt the Kyuubi drawing me to his cage. When I went there though, there was someone else waiting for me. She said she was my mother."

Sarutobi narrowed his eyes and said "What did she look like?"

Naruto said "She had green eyes, red hair, and was wearing a red battle kimono."

Sarutobi said "Where was she standing when you first saw her?"

Naruto said "She was standing in a corner of the room, why?"

Sarutobi said "Are you sure she wasn't behind the seal?"

Naruto said "I'm positive. Besides, if the Kyuubi tried to reach past the seal, he's shocked. There's no way she's the Kyuubi."

Sarutobi sighed and said "Good. I was worried for a second."

Naruto smiled and said "Anyway, she said that there are two scrolls here that were left by my father and her. I was to get them either when I turned 13 or when I mastered both transformations I inherited from them. And I have."

Sarutobi said "Really? Then show me."

Naruto changed into his blonde hair transformation, then dropped it and…hesitated. Naruto said "Gramps, is it possible for me to _not _do the demonic transformation?"

Sarutobi playfully said "Why don't you want to, Naruto? Scared?"

Naruto scoffed and denied what Sarutobi was saying. "Me? Scared? No way! It's just…well, the people of this village could easily recognize the Kyuubi's youki. If I transformed into my demonic state, they could feel the energy and do something rash. Can you _please_ just take my word for it?"

Sarutobi looked Naruto in the eye, and knew instantly that that wasn't the case. He knew that there was something about the transformation that was bugging the young boy. After debating it for a second, he decided to trust the boy who was like a grandson to him. Sarutobi said "I'll take your word for it. But I can't believe it Naruto. You mastered both transformations, and you're not even 13. …Take them. But do you need your mother's? You do have her in your body to coach you."

Naruto said "She said there's something in there that will help me not get my ass kicked for learning the Spirit Gun and Reiki Sword."

Sarutobi said "The clan techniques of the Urameshi and Kuwabara? …Oh yeah, they did sign a treaty saying your mother could learn it and so could her family."

The Hokage reached into his desk and pulled out the scrolls. He tossed them to Naruto and said "Naruto, I have to warn you. Your parents didn't want your heritage to be told to anyone until you were Jounnin at least. So make sure that scroll never leaves your person."

Naruto nodded and said "I'll make sure, Sarutobi."

The Hokage said "Good, now I'm pretty sure you still have a ninja team to be on."

Naruto looked at the clock and realized how late he was. He said "Oh yeah. I gotta go. See ya later."

Naruto then opened the window in the Hokage's office and flew out of it, changing into his fathers' transformation to go faster.

After training with his team, Naruto arrived at his house and pulled out his mom's scroll. Naruto would've read it, but his mom told him not to bother with it. She said that there was nothing in that scroll she couldn't tell him in person. Naruto opened the blood seal on the bottom of the scroll and pulled out another scroll. Reading the contents of it, Naruto realized that this scroll was what would give him permission to use the Spirit Gun and Reiki Sword without consequences from the Urameshi's and Kuwabara's.

Naruto took off and touched down at the clan home of the Urameshi's. The clan house was like a small mansion. Naruto knocked on the front door and was met with a man with short white hair and yellow eyes. He wore a black shirt and blue pants. He was Raizen Urameshi, Yusuke's grandfather. Naruto said "Sir, my name is Naruto Uzumaki-"

Raizen said "'Uzumaki', you say? Did you know a woman by the name of Kushina Uzumaki?"

Naruto said "Yes sir, that's what I'm here to talk about. She was my mother. She died in childbirth."

Raizen said "That's so sad. She was always full of life. …but anyway, what can I do for you?"

Naruto pulled out the scroll and handed it to Raizen. Raizen read over the scroll and said "I remember this. Your mother saved my eldest daughter and her friend from the Kuwabara Family. As payment for her deeds, we gave her our Spirit Gun Technique for her to pass down through her family."

Naruto said "I know sir. My mother left me a scroll on how to perform that and the Reiki Sword, but I wanted to make sure it was alright for me to use them."

Raizen thought it over and said "Wait here."

Raizen then went back in the house for a few seconds, then came back out. He said "Come with me."

Raizen then stepped out of the house and walked to the hospital with Naruto on his heel.

When Raizen arrived, he walked up to the Welcome desk and said "For a clan matter, I need a blood comparison test done right now."

The lady at the desk said "I'm sorry sir, but that could take a while to do."

Naruto pulled Raizen down and quietly said to him. "Y'know, I think it says who my mother is on my birth certificate. We could just go to Sarutobi and ask him to show it to you."

Raizen said "Good thinking. I hate waiting for blood test results anyway."

Raizen and Naruto both made their way to the Hokage Tower. Raizen went to the secretary to make an appointment while Naruto walked to the doors. Naruto then drew his foot up and kicked the door open forcefully, yelling "Kyaah, Bitch!"

The doors flew open, surprising the hell out of Sarutobi and causing his chair to tip backwards and hit the ground. Seeing this, Naruto busted out laughing. Raizen quickly walked up behind Naruto and said "I'm sorry to trouble you, Hokage-sama, but we need to see Naruto's birth certificate."

Sarutobi said "Why exactly do you need to see it, Raizen?"

Naruto said "I need proof that my mom is who I said she is."

Sarutobi quickly reached into his desk and pulled out a file. Inside the file was a bunch of stuff on Naruto, including a copy of his birth certificate. Sarutobi pulled out some black tape and taped over the name of Naruto's father, but left his mother's name uncovered and called Raizen over. Raizen looked at it, and said "That's proof enough for me. Naruto, from now on, you are allowed to use the Spirit Gun and Reiki Sword. I'll tell the Kuwabara's about this so that you won't have to show it twice."

Naruto bowed and said "Thank you, Raizen-san." Raizen then walked out and went home, with Naruto leaving to go home also.

When he got there, Naruto pulled out his fathers' scroll_. _He had been giddy to read it, but didn't want to do it in the open just in case someone was spying on him.

Naruto opened the scroll to see a handwriting that was close to his own, except it looked more fancy and business-like than Naruto's own.

"_Dear Naruto,_

_If you're reading this, then something went wrong with your birth and the Kyuubi escaped from your mothers' seal. If that is true, then most likely I gave my life to make sure that you could live yours, and if I had the chance to go back to that moment, I would do it again in a heartbeat. If you don't know who I am, my name is Minato Namikaze, the Yondaime Hokage, the Konoha no Kiroi Senko, and the title I'm most proud of, the Husband of Kushina Uzumaki and Father of Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze._

_Now, there's something I must tell you Naruto. I am not completely human. Neither is your mother. Your mother is 100 percent demon, the daughter of the Kyuubi even. She doesn't like to say it, but the Kyuubi is the King of the Demon World, which makes her the Princess and heir to the throne. _

Naruto's eyes widened at that part of the letter. Ever since he could communicate with the Kyuubi, the Kyuubi kept boasting about how he was the king of demons, but Naruto never paid him attention believing that he was lying to make himself seem stronger than he actually was.

_The problem is that the Kyuubi hates her for it. The Kyuubi has grown too attached to his seat as King and doesn't want to give it up, even going so far as to try and kill his own daughter. And with you being Kushina's son, if the Kyuubi escaped his seal, that means that the first thing he would come after is you and your mother. You have to be careful my son. _

_Now that your mother is covered, we have to move on to me. I'm not a demon like your mother, but I'm not completely human either. I am what's called a Saiyan. Saiyans were a race of warriors from another planet. They fought to live, and lived to fight. Every fight they were in, their powers increased, and whenever they healed from a fatal wound, their strength increased even more. _

_I first found out about my Saiyan heritage when I was 13. I had just accomplished a transformation that turned my hair blonde and my eyes blue. At that point, I called the technique "Goldenization." Stupid name I know, but come on, I was thirteen. Eventually, I was approached by the spirit of our Saiyan ancestor, Prince Vegeta. _

_Vegeta said that through all his generations of descendents, none of them achieved or deserved the power of a Saiyan, so their blood became more and more diluted. But he saw something different in me, and that something is what had him change me from a human to a Saiyan throwback. It seems that if a Saiyan is powerful enough, he can control the blood of his descendents. Vegeta used that ability to transform me from a human to a half-Saiyan._

_Throughout my life, Vegeta stood by my side, teaching me more and more about my Saiyan heritage and abilities. With Vegeta teaching me ki techniques, and Jiraiya of the Sannin teaching me chakra techniques, and eventually your mother teaching me Reiki techniques, they made me the legend I am today. _

_In this scroll is everything that Vegeta taught me, along with instructions on one of my signature Jutsu, the Rasengan. I would put the Hiraishin in here, but the Hiraishin earned me the nickname "Konoha no Kiroi Senko," and I want you to earn yourself one all on your own. _

_Naruto, you can doubt many things in this life. Doubt politics, doubt the elders, but never doubt the fact that your mother and I loved you with all our hearts and nothing will ever change that. If you don't ever remember me saying this, I'll tell you it again. I love you son, and I know that you will take this world by storm._

_Minato Namikaze"_

As Naruto read the letter, he started to feel something weird on his face. As he put his hand up to wipe it away, he realized it was tears. He was crying, for the first time in…he didn't know how long.

Naruto took a minute to get himself back together, then read on in the scroll about the techniques. At the beginning, it showed a guide on how to access your ki, but Naruto already knew that, so he skipped it.

_The first technique I'll put in this scroll is about the different forms of Super Saiyan. Naruto, if you don't know what that means, it's that transformation where your hair turns blonde and your eyes turn blue. That was my original hair and eye color also, but when Vegeta brought out my Saiyan blood, it changed to black. _

_Now, so far, there are four known levels of Super Saiyan. Super Saiyan 1 is the first form of Super Saiyan, which I unlocked at 13. The transformation changed my life completely. It multiplies your power, speed, and energy by a huge margin. The exact number is unknown, but I estimate that it's well over ten times. Your body gives off a yellow, flame-like aura and your hair stands up, like a fire. _

_This technique is a double-edged sword though, as it can only be unlocked by a feeling of overwhelming rage and indignation. During the state, you also become filled with anger and a need to fight, causing even some level-headed Saiyans (me) to toy with an opponent that they could easily defeat, no matter how dangerous that opponent is. _

_Overtime, as you train with this transformation more, you'll realize that the anger and need to fight start to decrease. Eventually, you can become a Super Saiyan and not feel an emotional difference at all. Also, this technique puts a huge strain on your body, which also decreases as you use the form more._

_The second form is Super Saiyan 2. I unlocked this form when I turned 16. It's basically Super Saiyan 1 on steroids. At Super Saiyan 2, your power is increased by even more than Super Saiyan. You become faster, your muscle build is barely increased, and your hair, if possible, sticks up even more. Your aura also creates electrical sparks around your body._

_The trigger for this one is the same as the first Super Saiyan form, and the effects on your character are the same. The negative effects are reduced the same way as in Super Saiyan 1. Also, the longer you stay in this form, the more you will see that it starts to affect your hair in your natural form. When I first mastered Super Saiyan 2, my hair started sticking up more than usual._

Naruto dropped the scroll and whooped for joy. The power increase from regular to Super Saiyan was enormous already. Just imagine how strong he would be if he unlocked the fourth level. _'If things keep going like this for me, I'll be the Hokage in no time.'_

Naruto read the scroll again and something caught his attention. His dad only needed three years to go from Super Saiyan to Super Saiyan 2. He unlocked Super Saiyan when he was 6, but now he's 12 and he still hadn't unlocked Super Saiyan 2. _'Damn, I need to catch up. I'm already three years behind my father.'_

Naruto sat on the floor of his house and started to meditate. Naruto felt around for his energy, then he grasped it and transformed into a Super Saiyan. Naruto then quickly raised his power, increasing it more and more.

Then, Naruto did it.

Naruto felt his power skyrocket, more than he had ever produced before. Naruto felt his hair sticking up more, he felt the intensity of his aura increase, and he heard the small crackle of electric sparks. He felt every muscle in his body increase in size, even if only barely, and he felt the anger. Naruto knew that he had unlocked the second level of Super Saiyan.

Naruto stood up and started to relish in his power. He felt strong enough to do anything and everything he ever wanted. _'Super Saiyan 2 is amazing. I can't believe how powerful I am now. That Uchiha…That bastard! He's been insulting me for years on end and it's time I got back at him. …As a matter of fact, I think I'll pay him a little visit.'_

Naruto started walking for the window, fully intending on flying out there and facing the Uchiha head on. But luckily, a voice inside his head saved his life. "_NARUTO UZUMAKI NAMIKAZE! JUST WHAT IN THE NINE LEVELS OF HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?"_

Naruto's eyes widened to the size of frying pans as he fearfully thought in his head _'Mom?'_

Kushina's rage filled voice said "_Don't you 'mom' me you dumbass. Just what were you about to do?"_

Naruto thought back _'I was gonna fight the Uchiha.'_

Kushina said "_No you're not. You and I are gonna have a little talk Naru-chan."_

Naruto suddenly fell unconscious, hitting the ground in a dead heap and dropping back to his normal state. He reappeared in the park that Kushina constructed in his mind. Before he could realize where he was, he was smacked across the back of his head by Kushina. She said "Naruto, you really disappointed me there."

Naruto said "What do you mean?"

Kushina said "As soon as you unlocked a new transformation, you were gonna rush over there to the Uchiha's residence and start a fight with him. Are you insane? You had no idea what that transformation did to your body, do you?"

Naruto said "What did it do?"

Kushina said "Your body couldn't handle the stress of Super Saiyan 2, but you were about to get into a fight with that form anyway. You complete dumbass!"

Naruto said "What's so wrong about it, mom? I felt the power. In Super Saiyan 2, I'm stronger and a lot faster than Sasuke. I could've beat him before the stress got to me. I know my limits, Mom."

Kushina sighed and said "No, you don't. You are overestimating your abilities and underestimating Sasuke's. As a matter of fact, let me show you just what would've happened if you went to fight him."

Kushina led Naruto to the pond in the park, then put her hand on it. The pond then got distorted for a moment, and when the surface became still again, it showed Naruto in his Super Saiyan 2 state.

(AN: Let me remind you guys that this fight scene between Naruto and Sasuke DID NOT HAPPEN! This is what WOULD HAVE happened if Kushina didn't interfere.)

'…_As a matter of fact, I think I'll pay him a little visit.'_ Were the thoughts of the newly Super Saiyan 2 Naruto. Naruto went to his window and opened it, quickly flying out and to the Uchiha District.

When he arrived, Naruto dropped out of the sky and landed in a huge thud. Naruto stood up and yelled "Sasuke! Come out here and take your ass-whooping like the whiny bitch you are!"

After a few minutes of Sasuke not coming out, Naruto yelled and said "Come out and face me Sasuke! Come out, or I'll start smashing shit!"

A few seconds later, Naruto yelled out "Okay then, you asked for it Sasuke!"

Naruto held his right hand out with the palm facing a building to his right. He focused his energy to his palm, causing an orb of dark red energy to form in his hand. Naruto built the power up, noticing that it built up faster than he intended and faster than it ever did before, and yelled out "Demon's Rage!"

The attack sailed forward and hit the building, exploding and destroying the building. The burning remains of the building landed on nearby buildings, causing them to catch on fire also. Naruto heard a scream, then saw Sasuke rushing at him from down the street.

Sasuke appeared in front of Naruto and tried to punch him, but Naruto quickly caught his hand, then threw him at a building that wasn't on fire. Sasuke quickly turned himself in the air to where his feet were to the building, then kicked off of them towards Naruto. Sasuke pulled out two kunai, throwing one and holding the other in a reverse grip. Naruto quickly jumped out of the way of the kunai, and caught Sasuke's wrist, easily anticipating the kunai strike.

Naruto said "Did you seriously expect this to work on me?"

Naruto then started squeezing Sasuke's wrist, crushing the fragile bones there. Sasuke screamed out in pain, dropping to his knees. Naruto said "Stop playing Sasuke and transform."

Naruto then kicked Sasuke in his chest, sending him flying through a nearby door. Naruto said "I'm not gonna keep holding back Sasuke. You had better transform right now."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes and started doing handseals quickly. "Fire Style: Grand Fireball Jutsu!"

Sasuke breathed out a huge fireball, which engulfed Naruto. Sasuke narrowed his eyes as the flames were suddenly put out by a huge gust of wind, courtesy of Naruto. Naruto said "You keep playing around with me, Sasuke. Now, I'm tired."

Naruto held out his hand, aiming for another building. Sasuke screamed out "No!" and ran to Naruto's position to try and stop him, but he arrived too late. Naruto shot off a Demon's Rage attack that destroyed a building and set others around it on fire. The street Naruto and Sasuke were fighting in was surrounded by burning buildings, and the fire was quickly spreading to other buildings.

Naruto looked at Sasuke and saw that he was furious. Naruto thought _'One more building might do it.'_

Naruto started looking at the nearby buildings, not seeing anything special about them. Looking further, Naruto saw a building that stood out from the others. Where the others were painted brown and looked close to each other, this building was red with the Uchiha Fan on it, and it was twice as tall as any of the other buildings.

Naruto smirked and thought _'Jackpot.'_ Naruto aimed his hand towards the building, smirking at the fearful look on Sasuke's face. Naruto said "That building looks special."

Sasuke pulled his fist back and punched Naruto in the face. He kept punching harder and harder, but Naruto didn't even bat an eyelash at it, he just kept charging his attack. Naruto then shot off the attack.

The attack sailed in the air and blew the building apart. Sasuke could only watch as his home was blasted apart and his families' district was burned to the ground. Sasuke looked at the cause of it all, then let loose a primal scream and transformed. His hair turned blue and his muscles grew to more than twice their original size. He also grew taller, now over a head taller than Naruto. Naruto smirked and said "That's more like it."

Naruto could say no more though as Sasuke punched him in the face, sending him flying. When Naruto landed, he looked up only to see Sasuke in his face again and punching him across his jaw. Naruto spun in the air and landed on the ground.

Sasuke said "You destroyed my home. Everything my family worked themselves for is ruined, all because of you. Mark my words, Demon, today is the day you die!"

Naruto smirked and said "You have no idea, who you're FUCKING WITH!"

Naruto disappeared, reappearing in front of Sasuke. Naruto quickly punched Sasuke in the gut, then hit Sasuke with a flurry of attacks. Sasuke kept trying to block, but couldn't even see the attacks coming. Naruto hit Sasuke with an uppercut and knocked him into the air, then disappeared and reappeared above him. Naruto then kicked him down, making a huge crater in the ground.

Sasuke got back up and tried to attack Naruto more, but every time he tried, Naruto would easily avoid it and bombard him with punches. After toying with Sasuke so much, Naruto said "You're starting to bore me."

Naruto quickly caught the fist Sasuke aimed at his face, then caught the second one. Naruto then landed a full power kick to Sasuke's stomach. The attack was so strong, that Sasuke dropped to his knees in pain, holding his stomach. Naruto looked at Sasuke and smirked, with a look in his eyes that had immeasurable amounts of arrogance.

Sasuke grabbed onto Naruto's clothes, trying to pull himself up to fight again. Naruto said "Don't you know when you're beat?"

Naruto then punched Sasuke in the face, sending him farther down the street, sprawled on the floor. Naruto raised up into the air and aimed his palm at Sasuke. Naruto started gathering more and more energy into his hand, causing a ball of energy twice as big as normal to form in his hand. Naruto smirked and said "Oh how the mighty have fallen. You could never match up to me in speed, and now I outclass you in strength. For all those years of mocking me, I finally get payback. Say goodbye, Sa-"

That was as far as Naruto could get, as his power turned on him. The power that Super Saiyan 2 granted Naruto started tearing his body apart little by little. The longer Naruto fought, fatigue started to add to the strain, weakening Naruto's body to the point where it had to shut down. Sadly for Naruto, it happened right before he killed Sasuke.

Naruto suddenly felt light-headed and started losing his grip on Super Saiyan 2. Naruto tried to fight through the pain to deliver a death blow to Sasuke, but it was as futile as a snail trying to outrun an avalanche. Naruto dropped to the ground, changing back to normal as he went. Naruto's crash to the ground crumbled any buildings around him that weren't' already burned to a crisp.

Sasuke, who was still in his transformed state, saw what happened to Naruto and realized that this could be his chance. Sasuke fought through the pain to get back up on his feet, but that caused too much pain. Sasuke could only get to his knees and crawl himself over to where Naruto was. Even though it took Sasuke close to 5 minutes to crawl himself over there, Naruto was still out like a light.

Sasuke fought through the pain and forced himself to his feet. He grabbed Naruto's head in one hand and Naruto's feet in the other. He then held Naruto above his head. He brought Naruto down quickly and brought his knee up. Sasuke's knee caused so much damage that it destroyed Naruto's spine and his backbone. The attack was so powerful that Sasuke's knee was digging into Naruto's back and showed in his stomach. Sasuke then dropped Naruto and grabbed his head again. Sasuke placed his hands at the right places, then he violently twisted, breaking Naruto's neck.

Naruto could only stare wide-eyed as Sasuke broke his back and snapped his neck. Kushina closed her eyes and sighed. She knew that there was a good chance that it wouldn't have happened that way, but she had to drive the point home that Naruto wasn't ready for that power yet.

Naruto said "Mom, c-could that really happen to me?"

Kushina gravely said "Yes, and that's what would have happened if I didn't stop you. In that scroll your father left you, he said that the Saiyan's power was a double-edged sword. You got a lot more powerful, but arrogant as a result. That power can easily go to your head, which is why I don't want you using it until I say that you can."

Naruto said "But mom, why not? Super Saiyan 2 would really help me become Hokage-"

Kushina yelled out "Super Saiyan 2 would have you being buried at 12 years old! Don't you get it, Naruto? If you use that transformation before you're ready, you could DIE! All the power of that transformation inside your body, without the ability to control it, would destroy you! When you transform into a Super Saiyan without control of it, you lose all rational thought. You would attack anyone around you, friend or foe. Now do you want to do that to Kurenai, to Shino, to HINATA?"

Naruto's eyes widened as the point of Kushina's tirade started sinking into his head. He quietly said "Something like this happened before, didn't it?"

Kushina said "When your father first unlocked Super Saiyan 2. He was in a battle and used the transformation to win it, but then he turned on his allies and tried to kill us. Luckily, I was there and I was the first person he attacked. It was like he was a different person. In the end, I helped him remember who we were and I helped him gain control of his power.

"But I can't do that with you if you decide to go into every battle waving around a new technique you learned 5 minutes before the battle began. There's a difference between learning a technique and mastering it, son, and you need to master Super Saiyan 2 before you even think of using it in battle."

Naruto sighed, nodded, and said "I understand. I won't use Super Saiyan 2 in battle. I'll work on everything I've learned. I'll make sure that what happened to my father isn't repeated with me."

Kushina smiled and hugged Naruto, saying "That's my boy. Now, get back out there and start practicing your new abilities. Sadly, none of them are battle worthy and you have to get them there."

Naruto said "Yes, Mom." and walked over to a wide open area of the park. He spent the rest of the day working on his Spirit Gun and Reiki Sword, hoping that they would be battle worthy by his next fight.

(End)


	6. The Power of True Friendship

Okay guys, here's the next chapter of Dragon's Rebirth. This starts right after Chapter 5.

* * *

After being scolded by his mom, Naruto spent the rest of the day in his mindscape working on the Spirit Gun. Naruto quickly found out that while in his mind, he could practice all the techniques and never run out of energy. Which was good seeing as Naruto was a novice at the technique.

The Spirit Gun required a lot of Reiki and Reiki control to properly wield it. When people usually learn it, they can only fire off one shot a day. Usually because they only have that much Reiki in their tanks. Naruto had more than enough Reiki for 10 shots, but had horrible control.

When he realized that, Naruto asked his mom for some help in controlling Reiki. Kushina told him to come near her. She said "Meditate. Like I told you before, your Reiki pulsates from your heart. You have to draw it from there, to your hands."

Naruto closed his eyes and focused his power to his hands. After that, Kushina said "Now push it farther. Try to focus it to the tip of your index finger."

Naruto concentrated more and did what Kushina asked him to do. Kushina then pulled out a kunai from nowhere and stuck the round end of it in the ground. She said "Okay son, now try to balance your-…Wait a minute, what the fuck am I thinking? Nevermind. Get up Naruto, and follow me."

Naruto was confused at what his mom was talking about, but he hopped to his feet and followed her to a tree. She said "Naruto, what I'm about to teach you is surface walking. If you can master this, then you will be able to walk up trees, buildings, ceilings, any solid surface. I want you to first try it with chakra, then try it with Reiki."

Naruto said "Fine then mom."

Naruto then ran up the tree, only to fall back down on his ass. Naruto tried to run up again, only to end up on his ass, barely getting higher than before. Kushina said "Naruto-chan, try taking it one step at a time. Going slower will help you a lot, trust me."

Naruto nodded, then decided to go slower. Naruto could only go 5 steps before he fell. Naruto said "Mom, I didn't get as high as I did before."

Kushina said "Naruto-chan, it's a marathon, not a sprint. Speed doesn't equal success."

Naruto sighed and created a few Shadow Clones. They all decided to go at it together. A half-hour later, the highest Naruto could only go up a maximum of 20 steps before he lost his footing. Kushina said "Naruto, try dispelling your Kage Bunshin now. See how far you can go alone."

Naruto dispelled his Shadow Clones, processing through all their experience before he went at it again. Naruto could walk up the entire tree easily. Kushina said "Good Naruto-chan. Now try running."

Naruto jumped off the tree and tried running up it. This time though, he could only go up 10 steps before he fell. Naruto said "What happened?"

Kushina said "When you walked up it, you took steps when you were ready. This time, you have to manipulate the chakra at the rate you're running. Now you know how much chakra is needed to stick, but you have to get faster at drawing out that amount."

Naruto nodded and got back up. He created 10 Shadow Clones then they all ran up the trees. Another half-hour passed until Naruto got back to his usual height of 20 steps. Dispelling the Shadow Clones, Naruto ran up the tree and found it a lot easier. Kushina said "Good Naruto-kun, you got it."

Kushina then jumped at him and punched him across the face. Naruto yelled out "Mom! What the hell?"

Kushina quickly sent a feint hook at Naruto, only to quickly twist and hit him with the heel of her foot. She said "Don't speak to your mother like that, boy."

Kushina then jumped at Naruto and started fighting him while they were sticking on the tree. Naruto could barely dodge his mom's hits since he had to stick to the side of the tree. Naruto eventually lost his footing and fell to the ground. Kushina sighed and said "Naruto, now we'll start fighting and surface walking at the same time."

Kushina closed her eyes, and Konoha State Park disappeared. They were now in a purely white void. When things came back into view, they were now in a long room. Kushina said "Naruto, create 10 Shadow Clones."

Naruto created 10, while Kushina did also. Naruto said "Mom, I thought you had no energy."

Kushina said "Correction, I have no Youki. All of it was turned into chakra, which I can still use."

Kushina then dived for the real Naruto and started fighting him. Kushina's clones started forcing Naruto's back until eventually all of them were on the walls of the room or on the ceiling. Kushina ordered her clones to not hit Naruto's, only pressure them to keep fighting.

A half hour and hundreds of clones later, Kushina told Naruto do drop down. They both dropped off the ceiling and flipped to upright positions. She then told Naruto to dispel his Clones and fight her. Naruto did so, and started fighting his mom. Sticking to the ceiling was now second nature to him. Walking or running, he could do both.

Kushina said "Good, now we'll focus on rolling. You have to roll on the surface, which means that whenever your body part comes to contact with the surface, you have to focus chakra to that point. This will take a lot more than 10 clones to master."

Naruto said "No problem." He created 50 Shadow Clones and got them started on it. Kushina then dropped down, watching her son train. A half hour later, Naruto dispelled his clones 10 at a time, processing the information quickly, then tried it himself.

Kushina said "You're moving really quick with this Naruto-chan. If you keep moving this quick, we can get in water walking before the night's over. …As a matter of fact, I have an idea."

Kushina closed her eyes and changed the landscape again. This time, it was the exact same room, but there was a huge hot tub taking up half the floor space. She said "Now, get 50 clones working on water walking while you and 20 clones work on surface rolling. Also, make…50 more clones. Those clones will work on using pure Reiki to walk up walls."

Naruto said "Okay then." Naruto formed the 120 clones she asked for, then got to the rolling. An hour later, Naruto dispelled the clones 10 at a time, then tried what Kushina asked him to do. Naruto could now roll on solid surfaces with no problem. He could also walk and run on water surfaces, but he couldn't exactly fight on water yet. That would take more training, which he could get in. Walking on walls with Reiki was getting there, but he couldn't run yet.

Kushina said "Come on Naruto-chan, by the time you leave here tonight, I want you completely able to walk, run, roll, and fight on any solid or liquid surface with either chakra or Reiki."

Naruto made 50 more clones and got them to fighting each other on the water, while 50 clones were trying water walking with Reiki. Another 50 were running up walls or rolling with Reiki. Naruto gave these clones 2 hours to work on what they were doing. When they dispelled, Naruto finally met his mom's goal. He could now move easily on water or solid surfaces with either chakra or Reiki.

Kushina said "Good job Naruto. Now try the Reiki Sword again."

Naruto concentrated, and in less than a second, a blue sword of Reiki formed in his hand. Naruto gave the sword a few waves, testing its' weight in his hands. Naruto said "I did it!"

Kushina said "As I expected. Now when you wake up, I want you to try the Spirit Gun again. See how many shots you can get off before you run out of Reiki. But for now, it's getting late. I think you should go to sleep."

Naruto nodded and said "Good night, Mom."

* * *

(The next morning)

Naruto was walking to the training ground the next morning. Unlike usual, he was in deep thought on what to do about his team. _'Should I tell them?'_

A voice inside his head said _"I thought we had this conversation earlier Naruto. If they're your true friends, they won't see you any differently."_

'_I know what you said, Mom. But I just can't help being afraid."_

Kushina chuckled in Naruto's head. _"I know how you feel. Do you know how hard it was for me to tell your father I was actually a demon? I told him about my demonic heritage after we had been living together for a year. You know what he did?"_

'_What?'_

Kushina said _"He smacked me upside the head and said 'Why'd you take so long to tell me, stupid?'"_

Naruto chuckled to himself a little and said _'So he wasn't mad or anything?'_

Kushina said _"Oh, he was mad. He was mad I didn't trust him enough with the secret earlier. He said that if I thought he would change his opinion of me over something as stupid as that, then I didn't know him."_

Naruto replied _'I hope Hinata-chan and Shino are as forgiving as dad was.'_

Naruto reached the training ground to see Hinata and Shino there doing some light stretching. Naruto walked over and gave Hinata a good morning kiss, while Shino looked at Naruto's display of affection and said "Get a room."

Naruto turned to Shino and said "Get a girl."

Shino stayed silent for a moment, then said "Touché."

Hinata said "So, what are we gonna do today?"

Naruto sighed and said "Before we begin, there's something I have to tell you. Sit down, this may take a while."

Shino and Hinata both took a seat with Naruto sitting in front of them. He said "Now you guys know that I'm the container for the Kyuubi, right?"

Shino said "Naruto, is this about that again? We told you before, we don't look at you differently. You're not the Kyuubi."

Naruto sighed and said "You're right Shino. I'm not the Kyuubi, I'm his grandson."

Hinata screamed out "WHAT?"

Shino's jaw literally dropped to the ground and his sunglasses fell off, showing his green eyes to the world.

Naruto, looking to his side, said "I'm the Kyuubi's grandson. To make a long story short, the Kyuubi had my mom, then he wanted to kill her because she would inherit his throne as the demon king. Mom somehow wound up with him being sealed in her, she had me, he escaped from her seal and killed her, and then he got sealed in me."

Hinata started regaining her composure, as did Shino. She said "Wait a minute, so that means that…you're actually a demon?"

Naruto said "I'm half demon."

Shino said "So the other half of your blood is human, right?"

Naruto shook his head, and said "That's where things start to get crazy. It turns out, I'm half demon, quarter human, and …quarter alien."

Hinata once again yelled out "WHAT?"

Shino's jaw dropped, but he was able to somehow keep his glasses on. Naruto said "It turns out that my dad was descended from an alien race and somehow had his alien blood reawakened and became half alien."

Hinata said "So hold up, let me get this straight. …You're quarter human?"

Naruto nodded, still not looking Hinata in the eye.

Hinata continued "You're quarter alien?"

Naruto nodded again.

Hinata said "And your half demon?"

Naruto said "Listen guys, I'd understand if you didn't wanna be around me anymore-"

Naruto was cut off by Hinata grabbing his chin and forcing him to turn her way. She then gave him a deep kiss, trying to show Naruto she didn't care. Apparently, Naruto got the message as he wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. After a while, Hinata ended the kiss, then punched him in the chest.

"Oww, what was that for?"

"For thinking that I'd EVER leave you over something as small as that."

"But Hinata-chan, how can you still wanna be with me? I'm a demon."

"And I should care, why?"

Naruto was stumped over Hinata's answer to his question. He said "H-huh?"

Hinata looked him in the eye, got a serious look on her face, and said "Do you wanna massacre a village of people for no reason?"

Naruto shook his head. "Never."

Hinata kept her gaze locked on his eyes and said "Do you have a hunger for human flesh?"

Naruto didn't want to, he really didn't want to. But he couldn't stop the comment from escaping him. He smirked and said "Well, a certain _kind_ of human flesh."

Hinata blushed bright red at that, while Shino started chuckling watching them. In Naruto's head, Kushina dropped to the floor with Naruto's idiocy. _'Count on Minato's seed to ruin a moment as romantic as that.' _

Surprising all that were hearing the conversation, Hinata slyly smirked, leaned forward and said "Come over my house later, maybe we can nip that hunger in the bud."

Now it was Naruto's turn to blush. Hinata pulled back and re-adopted a serious look on her face. She said "But seriously, do you?"

Naruto said "Of course not."

Hinata said "So you don't behave, think, or feel any different than you have your entire life?"

Naruto said "No."

Hinata hugged Naruto and said "Then you're still the man I fell in love with, which is all I care about."

Naruto's eyes started tearing up. Shino said "Naruto, we've been friends for a while. Do you really think we'd abandon you over something as small as that?"

Hearing Shino's statement, the tears in Naruto's eyes fell. Naruto started crying for the second time in less than a day and said "Thanks guys. Really, you don't have any idea what this means to me."

Hinata said "Trust me, Naruto-kun, no mater what happens in your life, count on me to be beside you until the end."

Hearing what Hinata said, Naruto's heart skipped a few beats. Kushina thought _'This girl's a keeper.'_

Naruto sat there, holding Hinata until he stopped crying. After he stopped crying, Shino and Hinata helped him to his feet. Naruto said "Thanks."

Hinata said "I'll always be here. Now, let's get to training. …And another thing, I wouldn't tell Kurenai-sensei about that yet. I think you should wait until she starts to know you more. That way, she would start to befriend you for _who_ you are and _what_ you are wouldn't matter."

Naruto said "Thanks, Hina-chan."

Hinata said "Now come on, lets start training."

Naruto said "Let me try something first. Apparently my mom got permission from the Urameshi and Kuwabara Clans to use some of their Jutsu, and since I'm her son, it applies to me also."

Shino said "Which ones?"

Naruto grabbed his right wrist with his left hand, and made a fake gun with his index and thumb. Naruto pointed his hand at a tree, then shot off a Spirit Gun. The attack shot out of his finger and hit the tree. Naruto closed his eyes, then said "I still got some shots left."

Naruto then pointed to a different tree and fired off another one. Naruto then fired off two more before he closed his eyes and felt his power. Naruto muttered "Damn, I'm spent."

Hinata said "What did you learn from the Kuwabara Clan?"

Naruto focused Reiki to his hand, then formed a blue sword. Hinata said "Nice. Now let's see how well it does compared to a real sword."

Naruto said "Hold up a second."

Naruto transformed into Super Saiyan and flew home. He touched down on his balcony where he also had a few plants. He opened his balcony door and went in his house. He went to his room and looked under his bed to pick up his sword. Naruto's sword had a black handle with gold diamonds in it. There was no guard to it. The blade was about 2 ½ feet long and the handle was 6 inches long. Naruto ran back out his house and flew to his training ground and tossed his sword to Hinata. Hinata said "Come on then."

Naruto formed his Reiki Sword and lunged at Hinata. Hinata held the sword horizontally to block Naruto's slash. Hinata then forced herself forward, pushing Naruto's sword back, then tried a diagonal slashed at him. Naruto blocked the attack, but it went through his Reiki Sword and destroyed it. Naruto and Hinata were in shock so much that they didn't register Hinata's sword going forward and breaking on Naruto's arm.

Naruto looked at the sword and said "Shit. Now I gotta get it fixed later. …But for now, I need to do something independently."

Hinata said "What?"

Naruto said "You know that transformation that makes my hair blonde?"

Hinata said "Yeah?"

Naruto said "It comes from my alien heritage. They call it Super Saiyan. I unlocked the second level last night and I'm trying to master it."

Hinata said "Is there anything I can do to help?"

Naruto said "I don't think so. This is something I have to conquer myself."

Naruto then sat down and started meditating. Naruto transformed into Super Saiyan, then concentrated on going further. Eventually, Naruto reached the second level. Naruto gritted his teeth, trying his best to bear through the pain the form caused. Naruto concentrated on staying in Super Saiyan 2 as long as he possibly could, but eventually the pain became too much for him. Through gritted teeth, Naruto screamed and dropped down to normal. Naruto started huffing loudly, trying to regain his breath.

In his head, Kushina said _"Naruto-chan, maybe you should try doing that with Super Saiyan first. That's what your father did, and he said it helped a lot."_

Naruto nodded his head and thought back _'Thanks mom.'_

Naruto then transformed into his Super Saiyan state, then rejoined his friends for their training. When Kurenai came, she saw Naruto's transformed state and said "Naruto, why are you like that? I thought you only changed into that state to fight?"

Naruto said "I unlocked a second level to this state that I can't control. I'm trying to gain control of the second by practically living in the first."

Kurenai got a confused look on her face. Naruto said "The second form causes a lot of stress on me. I'm trying to live with the stress of the first level to help me conquer the second."

Kurenai got the "Oh" look on her face, then said "Well, I wish you luck, Naruto. Now team, come on, we got a mission to do."

* * *

After completing 4 D-rank missions, they were paid and let out for the day. Naruto said farewell to his team and left to get his sword fixed. Naruto was walking down the street, then saw the store he was looking for. The Phoenix Claw Weapon Shop.

Going in, Naruto saw a girl at the counter. She had on a pink Chinese shirt and green pants. Her hair was stylized into two buns. She was also wearing a red Konoha hitai-ate. She saw Naruto and said "Hello, can I help you?"

Naruto said "Yeah, I need my sword to get fixed."

Naruto pulled his sword out and gave it to the girl. She said "Okay then, it shouldn't be that hard to do."

Naruto chuckled at her and said "That's because you haven't pulled it out of its' sheath yet."

The girl looked at him questioningly, but pulled out the sheath, and saw that she could only pull out a part of the sword. The other part of it was still in the sheath.

The girl said "Sorry, but the blade is ruined. There's no way to fix it. You'll have to get a new sword."

Naruto said "How much would that be?"

The girl said "Our cheapest sword is about 500 ryo, but a little advice, we didn't actually make it, and it dulls quickly, so it would just be a waste of money."

Naruto said "Well then, miss, how much would a good sword cost me?"

The girl said "Hold up. …Around…2500 ryo."

Naruto checked his wallet, and said "Damn. I only have 1500."

The girl said "Sorry then, I can't sell it to you."

Naruto said "Is there any way that I can work off the difference?"

She said "Give me a second."

The girl then went into the back of the store, and came out with a black haired man following her. He said "Hello, I'm Dustin. What can I do for you?"

Naruto said "Well, I wanna buy a sword that costs 2500 ryo but I only have 1500. I was wondering if I could work off the difference."

Dustin said "We need a stock boy around the shop. How much can you bench press?"

Naruto said "No idea. I know that I can lift a merchant kart with one hand."

Dustin's eyes widened and said "You're lying."

Naruto said "If I'm lying, I'm dying. And I don't see myself pushing up daisies."

The man said "Prove it." He went into the back of the store, then came back with a metal pole. "Lay on the ground and bench press this."

Naruto did as the man told him, saying "This thing isn't heavy at all."

Dustin said "That's because it grows heavier with chakra."

Dustin then put his hand on the pole, and started channeling chakra into it. The more he poured into it, the heavier it got. It started getting heavier and heavier, but still Naruto could bench press it without a problem. Eventually, after the man poured about half his chakra into it, the bar got too heavy for Naruto to handle. Naruto closed his eyes and started calling forth more of his power, increasing his strength. Dustin kept pouring chakra into the pole, but Naruto just raised his power level. Dustin then said "Alright then, you got the job."

Naruto put the pole down and stood back up. He said "So how heavy did the pole get?"

Dustin said "A little over half a ton."

Naruto's shock showed on his face. He said "Really? I didn't know I was that strong."

Dustin said "Your average merchant kart weighs around 300 pounds. Kid, you are incredibly strong."

The girl, who was watching the entire thing, said "If I didn't see it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it."

Dustin said "Listen, uhh…I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name."

Naruto said "Naruto Uzumaki."

Dustin said "Listen Naruto, you'll come and help here at this same time 3 hours a day for about a month. If you can do that, then we'll be even."

Naruto said "Really? Thank you."

Dustin said "No problem. Your first day of work begins now. Now follow me."

Dustin lead Naruto and the girl to the back room, where everything was in shambles. There were hundreds of kunai, shuriken, swords, staffs, hammers, everything, just laying around. Dustin said "You can start to take inventory of our storage room and organize everything. Tenten here will watch you."

Dustin then left and went to watch the front desk. Naruto said "Damn. You guys got a lot of stuff in here."

Tenten said "We get like 50 people in here a day to get weapons."

Naruto said "Well then, I better get started on working. Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

In a puff of smoke, 10 Naruto's appeared. Each Naruto went forward and started cleaning up the storage room, leaving Naruto and Tenten at the entrance. Tenten said "How are they doing that? Clones are just Genjutsu, aren't they?"

Naruto said "Those aren't regular clones. They're Shadow Clones."

Tenten said "But doesn't that Jutsu take massive amounts of chakra to use?"

Naruto smirked and said "It's a good thing I have more than most Jounnin then."

Tenten said "You're lying. There's no way you have more chakra than a Jounnin."

Naruto said "Oh really? Care to bet?"

Tenten said "Yeah. What's the bet?"

Naruto said "Let's go to the entrance of the store. Grab the next random Jounnin to walk by. If I have more chakra than him, you have to become my Kenjutsu sparring partner."

Tenten said "And if you don't, then you owe me 500 ryo."

Naruto said "Deal."

* * *

(10 minutes later)

Tenten was staring at Naruto with eyes as wide as saucer plates. "What in the world? You actually had more chakra than that Jounnin?"

Naruto said "Yep, and now you have to be my Kenjutsu sparring partner."

Tenten said "Fine then."

Tenten showed Naruto to the back entrance of the shop, where there was an open yard. Tenten grabbed two wooden swords and tossed one to Naruto. Naruto barely caught it before Tenten charged him and struck him. Naruto barely had the time to block the hit. Tenten then swung again and again. Naruto blocked them, but after blocking three, he fell. Naruto got back up, while Tenten said "That was pitiful Naruto. Who taught you Kenjutsu?"

Naruto said "No one. I usually just train a little with my girlfriend."

Tenten said "Well then, I'll teach you a basic style. But from there, you have to find your own, okay?"

Naruto said "Sure."

Tenten then had him get into a Kenjutsu stance. After correcting him, she had him send slashes with the wooden sword. Naruto absorbed the information she gave him like a sponge. Tenten said "Okay then, now I want you to do a diagonal slash just like I showed you."

Naruto did it. Tenten then instructed him to do it again. And again and again. Eventually, Naruto had done 100 before she told him to do another one. She then kept having him repeat them while she corrected him. Soon enough, Naruto was doing them flawlessly.

Tenten said "You have the technique down. Now you just have to get them into muscle memory."

Naruto said "How do I do that?"

Tenten said "You have to practice it everyday. Sadly, it'll take longer than a month for you to learn this."

Naruto smirked and said "But what if I could fit a month of practice in just a day?"

Tenten said "What?"

Naruto created 60 clones, each of them with wooden swords. The clones then assumed the Kenjutsu stance that Tenten taught him. Tenten said "How will this help?"

Naruto said "Whatever the clones see, hear, or read while they're alive goes to me and all the other clones when they dispel."

Tenten widened her eyes and said "Really?"

Naruto said "Yep."

Tenten said "That's awesome. With that, you could learn this entire thing in just a day."

Naruto nodded and said "Exactly what I was thinking."

Tenten then corrected the stance of one clone and the clone dispersed, sending the info to all the other clones, who fixed their stances to all perfect forms. They then started slashing, which Tenten started correcting again. Eventually, she had to do less and less as the clones learned more and more.

When she told them to dispel, they dispelled in groups of 10. Tenten said "Why did you have them do that?"

Naruto said "If I dispelled them all at once, then I'd have to go through all their memories and experiences at once, which could cause me a major headache or kill me."

Tenten said "Damn. Forgive me for saying it, but it's almost not worth the risk of overexerting yourself and dying."

Naruto said "Yeah, but we wouldn't be shinobi without the constant threat of death looming over our heads."

Tenten said "Sadly, you're right."

Tenten then lunged at Naruto and tried for a diagonal strike. Instinctively, Naruto went for a diagonal slash, meeting Tenten in a stalemate. Tenten then pulled the sword back and tried to go for a horizontal slash. Naruto turned the blade upside down and put his hand on the non-bladed part and pushed, stopping Tenten's sword in its' tracks. The force of Naruto's hand caused him to push her sword back.

Naruto then blocked all of Tenten's next strikes, easily evading them. When it was done, Naruto could perform all the basic moves of Kenjutsu. Tenten said "You're getting good Naruto. But you're still not done yet. You have a lot more to learn."

Naruto said "Okay then. …It seemed that my Shadow Clones just finished with the storage room."

Tenten then looked at the sun and saw that it was down. She said "It seems that your three hours are up."

Naruto said "I guess it is. I'll see you tomorrow then, Tenten-san."

Naruto then levitated into the air and flew out of the yard, shocking the hell out of Tenten.

* * *

(End)


	7. You Make Me Wanna

(The next day)

When Naruto arrived at the shop the next day, he saw Tenten glaring at him a little. Naruto said "Uuh, what's up Tenten-san?"

Tenten said "How did you do that?"

Naruto said "Do what?"

Tenten said "Don't act dumb. Yesterday, when you left. You FLEW! How could you have possibly flown like that? Even the best wind users in the Elemental Nations can only glide!"

Naruto smirked and said "Oh that. It was nothing special. As a matter of fact, I'm surprised you didn't know I could do that."

Tenten sarcastically said "Oh, because people flying is sooo common these days."

Naruto said "No, because at the Genin Selection Tournament a couple weeks ago, I showed that I could fly. I thought that it would've spread through Konoha already."

Tenten said "Oh, I wasn't there."

Naruto said "Really? It was the talk of the town. I thought everyone in the village was there."

Tenten said "Yeah, but Neji dissuaded our team from going. The only people we knew in that Tournament was your team, and when he heard that your team would go against that Uchiha boy's team, he said that the outcome would be so obvious that it wouldn't be worth wasting time watching."

Naruto said "So, who did you think would win?"

Tenten said "Oh, you don't wanna know."

Naruto narrowed his eyes. "You thought Sasuke's team would win. Why?"

Tenten started sweating on her forehead a little. "What makes you think I thought the Uchiha's team would win?"

Naruto said "Because if you thought I would've won, you would've said it. Let me guess, you thought that since he was part of the Uchiha Clan, he would win?"

Tenten said "The fact that he's an Uchiha didn't matter."

Naruto chuckled. "You're a good swordsperson Tenten, but you're a horrible actress. You based your assumption on his family name. I can tell because even after I told you his first name, you continue to call him by his family name."

Tenten sighed. "How could you-"

Naruto interjected, saying "I've been being lied to my whole life Tenten. Part of surviving was learning how to tell. But seriously Tenten, you shouldn't have counted my team out without learning something about us. Immediately assuming Sasuke would win without having any facts is subjective and prejudice, and a decision like that could really land you in hot water."

Tenten said "Yeah, yeah. But back to my original question, how did you fly?"

Naruto said "Tenten, we all got secrets."

Tenten said "Alright then. But just so I don't have a third heart attack, what else can you do?"

Naruto thought about the question, then said "I can't be hurt by most weapons."

Tenten said "What do you mean?"

Naruto said "Kunai and swords can't make me bleed."

Tenten said "Prove it."

Naruto pulled a kunai out of his and tossed it to Tenten. "Check it. Make sure it's not a fake."

Tenten felt over the blade, saying "It's real." She then tossed it back to Naruto. Naruto smirked and stabbed himself in the head with the kunai. Fortunately for Naruto, the kunai was smashed into a pancake. Unfortunately for Tenten, she had a third heart attack.

* * *

(A week later)

Naruto's week of working at the weapon shop was in one word: boring. He did the exact same thing over and over again. The only thing that made it fun was the fact that Tenten taught him Kenjutsu while his clones did the work. But unless she taught him, he was bored. He almost wished something would happen just to liven things up.

Unfortunately for him, Fate decided to listen to his mental pleas.

Walking in the shop that day, Naruto saw Tenten standing there. Naruto said "So Tenten, what do you guys got for me today?"

Tenten said "Well, you gotta pick up some stuff from a neighboring town and bring it back."

Naruto said "Isn't this type of thing usually reserved for a D-rank mission?"

Tenten got an evil smirk on her face. "Yeah, but why pay for a team of Genin when we have a slave-I mean, worker, who can bench press half a ton here to deliver it for us?"

Naruto narrowed his eyes and said "Fine then."

Naruto then turned around and was about to leave the store, when Dustin's voice from behind him said "You're leaving your partner, Naruto."

Naruto and Tenten both turned to Dustin and said "Who?"

Dustin pointed at Tenten, causing Naruto to get an evil smirk on his face. Tenten said "Why me uncle?"

Dustin said "Because I said so. Now get going."

Tenten said "Naruto's getting money off his debt for this. What am I getting?"

Dustin said "You get to live under my roof rent free for another day, now move your ass."

Tenten started walking to the door, saying "This sucks."

Naruto chuckled and said "Welcome to my world."

They both quickly ran to the neighboring town, which was only 30 minutes away at their speed. When they arrived, Tenten quickly led Naruto to the person they had to see for the supplies. It turned out that the Phoenix Weapon Shop was about to run out of the metal ore needed to make their weapons, and they needed to pick it up from that town.

While walking to the location of the supplies, Naruto said "It can't be that heavy."

* * *

(10 minutes later)

Naruto, under a ton of pure metal ore, grunted out "Me and my big mouth."

Tenten was walking in front of Naruto, laughing at him and saying "Come on, it's just a bit farther."

Naruto grunted out "Whatever."

After they were walking for a while, Tenten stopped abruptly. Naruto looked up and said "What's wrong?"

Tenten narrowed her eyes and said "Someone's watching us."

Naruto said "What are you talking about? I don't sense anyone."

Before Tenten could retort, someone yelled out "Water Style: Water Wave Jutsu!"

Tenten quickly jumped away as a stream of water shot at where she originally was. Tenten quickly pulled out a kunai and threw it at the place the Jutsu originated, but she didn't hear it go through anything.

Three Water-nin with a slash on their headbands landed around Tenten. Tenten narrowed her eyes and said "Who are you?"

One of them, the guy Tenten assumed was their leader, said "We're just your friendly neighborhood thieves. Now hand over all your money and this metal ore, and we _might_ let you go."

Tenten said "How about this? You all turn around, leave, and never bother us again, and maybe I won't shove a kunai where the sun don't shine!"

The leader narrowed his eyes and said "We were just gonna leave you alone, but I guess that some stuff just doesn't go according to plan."

The leader started doing handseals. Tenten jumped out of the way as another Water Wave Jutsu rushed over where she originally was. Tenten pulled a kunai out and threw it at them, causing them to scatter. All three of them did the Water Wave Jutsu, aiming it at Tenten. Tenten jumped over it and landed on the metal ore cube, warranting a grunt of increased pain from Naruto. Tenten sheepishly said "Sorry, Naruto."

Tenten saw the three ninja getting ready to throw a volley of kunai at her, so she quickly pulled out her sword and stood at the ready. When the kunai came, Tenten sliced through two of them, but the last one hit her in the leg, causing her to scream in pain and drop her sword.

Seeing this, the three ninja pulled out more kunai and threw them at a defenseless Tenten. Tenten was about to be skewered, but thanks to the timely intervention of Naruto shaking the cube, Tenten fell over on her back, causing the kunai to harmlessly pass over her.

All of a sudden, the metal ore cube went flying 20 feet in the air. Tenten was wondering what the hell happened, but before she landed on the ground, she heard a voice yell "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Where before there was one Naruto holding the cube up, now there were 20 supporting the cube in mid air. The original Naruto left his clones to hold up the cube as he flew up there to Tenten. He said "Tenten-chan, are you alright?"

Tenten said "I think I'll live. I don't think the kunai went through anything particularly life-threatening."

Naruto narrowed his eyes and said "Except your leg. Stay here for a second, I'll handle these three jackasses."

Naruto floated down next to the three Water nin, while the Water nin started shaking in their boots. One of the nameless flunkies said "Boss, t-t-that guy was just FLYING!"

The other nameless flunkie said "Forget that, he was CARRYING the metal ore! With his bare hands! Boss, I think we should run."

The leader, who was about to void his bowels, said "It's no problem. It's only one person, right?"

Naruto said "You know, I haven't actually had much experience with this Jutsu. But seeing as you three are weaklings, I think I will use it. Reiki Sword!"

Naruto held out his hand, and a blue sword of Reiki appeared in it. Naruto then charged forward, with the leader of the Water nin shooting another Water Wave at him. Naruto held the Reiki Sword in front of him and sliced through the attack, surprising the nin.

Naruto made it to the leader, who pulled out a kunai and tried to fight Naruto. Naruto went for a vertical slash, but the leader blocked it. The leader then tried to cut Naruto, but Naruto jumped to the side quickly, then sliced the man's leg, sending him to one knee. After that, Naruto sliced his chest open, keeping him out of the fight.

The other two flunkies, who were to Naruto's left and right, charged Naruto at the same time. The left one jumped and went for Naruto's head while the right one slid down and tried to go for his feet. Naruto waited for the right moment, then turned to his left and did a backflip, flipping over the one who tried to cut his foot, and nailing the one who went for his head in the chin.

Naruto quickly used his Reiki Sword to cut the guy in his stomach, leaving one guy left. Naruto said "You were the one who hit Tenten-chan with that kunai. Now you'll pay for it."

Naruto powered up to his fullest in Super Saiyan, then charged the last flunkie. The flunkie turned and tried to run, but before he could go anywhere, he felt Naruto's Reiki Sword pierce itself through his leg. Naruto dismissed the Reiki Sword, leaving the blood from the wound a clear place to pour out.

Ignoring the mans' screams, Naruto flew up to where his clones were still holding the metal ore. He flew up to where Tenten was, seeing that she had wrapped her wound. Naruto said "Tenten-chan, can you stand up?"

Tenten sarcastically said "I have a kunai in my leg. Yeah, I can even do the cancan."

Naruto smirked and said "Get a mini-skirt, and I'd pay to see that."

Tenten blushed, but angrily said "Just shut up and get us back to the village."

Naruto said "Fine then. Hold up."

Naruto grabbed Tenten and then held her bridal style as he flew back to the village. As they were flying, Tenten's head was brushing against Naruto's body, causing her to unknowingly blush. Looking at Naruto, she thought _'He looks hot with blonde hair-wait a minute, what am I thinking?'_

Naruto didn't notice the blushing of Tenten and kept flying towards the village. When he entered it, he flew to the Weapon Shop and told his clones to drop their load there. He went forwards to the hospital and kicked the door down and yelled out "She needs help!"

One of the passing doctors said "So she's a demon lover, huh? Why should we help her? She should die along with you."

In a split second, Naruto created a Shadow Clone, handed Tenten to the clone, created a Spirit Sword, then rushed forward and held it under the man's throat. Naruto then menacingly said "Because if she dies, so do ALL OF YOU! Now someone HEAL HER NOW!"

The doctor who talked to Naruto quickly rushed and picked up Tenten. He then rushed her to the operating table and medically healed her leg, with Naruto watching over him threatening him. When it was over, Tenten's leg was fine, but the doctor told her to stay off of it for a few days. Naruto picked her back up then walked out of the hospital.

When they were out of the hospital, Tenten said "Naruto-kun, why did he say that stuff?"

Naruto said, in a tone that told her to drop it, "Tenten-chan, there are some things better left unsaid."

Tenten wisely kept her mouth shut, but was still pondering what he meant. Naruto carried her home and to her bed. Afterwards, he left the shop, promising to come back the next day.

* * *

(2 weeks later)

Ever since Naruto taking Tenten to the hospital, he and her had gotten a lot closer. Naruto learned to appreciate Tenten's borderline obsession with weapons, and Tenten learned to appreciate Naruto's borderline obsession with ramen, fire, and things that go 'boom.' Tenten also showed herself to be more and more trustworthy in Naruto's eyes. So trustworthy, in fact, that he often contemplated telling her about the Kyuubi and about his demonic and alien heritage.

On Naruto's last day working for the Weapon Shop, Tenten was waiting for him behind the counter like usual. She said "Hello Naruto-kun. How are you today?"

Naruto said "As fine as I can be in a village full of people who hate me, Tenten-chan."

Tenten chuckled and said "You always say that when I ask you how you are."

Naruto said "I always that because it's true. Now what do I have to do today?"

Tenten said "For today, we have to go to the Jounnin around the village to deliver them their orders. We have…20 orders to fill before the day is up. Do that, and the sword is yours."

Naruto said "Sounds pretty easy. Let's go."

Tenten then led Naruto out the door and around the village. The job was pretty cut and dry. Go around town, find the Jounnin, give them their orders. It was going pretty smooth until they got to the last name on the list, Kakashi Hatake.

Naruto and Tenten walked to Kakashi's house, only to see a note on the door that said "Training Team. If you need me, come to Training Ground Seven."

Tenten said "Training a team? That's weird."

Naruto said "How?"

Tenten said "Gai-sensei told us that Kakashi has failed every team he was assigned. How could he have a team to train?"

Naruto shrugged and said "I don't know. But let's find him and find out."

Naruto and Tenten both went to Training Ground 7 to hear Kakashi coaching his team through a teamwork exercise. Naruto thought _'Now I remember his name! He was the sensei of one of the failing teams! But whose team was he a sensei of?'_

When they cleared the shrubbery, they saw Kakashi drilling Sakura, Sasuke, and Kiba through some exercises. Naruto mentally yelled _'DAMNIT!'_

A voice in his head shrieked back just as loudly _**'Will you keep it down, some of us are trying to sleep God damnit.'**_

Naruto replied _'Sorry Gramps, I forgot you old geezers liked to get your sleep. …No never mind, you passed 'old' years ago. You're ancient.'_

Hearing his daughter snicker at her sons' joke, the Kyuubi replied _**'Like that old human you 'affectionately' call 'Grandpa?'"**_

Naruto replied _'No, he's 'antique.' He's like you, but useful.'_

Kushina all out laughed at Naruto's blatant disrespect for the Kyuubi, while the Kyuubi just grumbled. Outside Naruto's mind, Tenten saw Naruto's sour expression and said "What's wrong?"

Naruto said "Sasuke' s a Genin. I swear, he always finds a way to come back. He's like a fucking cockroach."

Tenten said "What's the beef between you and him?"

Naruto groaned and said "You don't wanna know. Let's just finish this order and get out of here. The less time I spend around Sasuke, the better."

Tenten said "Okay, but I want an explanation later."

Naruto and Tenten quickly ran up to Kakashi. Naruto quickly said "Kakashi-san, we are here to deliver your order from the Phoenix Weapon Shop."

Before Kakashi could say anything, Naruto pressed the package in his hands and turned around. He was halfway out of the clearing before Sasuke noticed who he was and yelled "Dobe!"

Naruto muttered "Damnit. Almost made it."

Naruto turned around and said "What do you want Sasuke?"

Sasuke smirked and said "So you're a delivery boy now? I knew you would never make it as a Genin."

Sakura said "I knew him and his entire team were worthless. They don't deserve to be on your level, Sasuke-kun."

Naruto said "Sasuke, I do not have the time to deal with your ego right now. Come on Tenten-chan, let's go."

Kiba yelled "You just called her 'Tenten-chan!' You're cheating on Hinata-chan. I knew you were no good you slimy snake!"

Tenten said "Naruto-kun is a good friend of mine, who just happens to be male. You could have a female friend outside of this flat-chested bitch too, but you probably chase them all away like a fucking horn dog!"

Sakura said "What did you say?"

Tenten said "You heard me!"

Sasuke said "As if you're any better. I can tell from how you are right now that you're nothing. You're nothing but a weak, talent less bitch who hides behind her teammates power. All the training and learning in the world won't change the fact that you're talent less and always will be. You'll only ever be good for one thing and that's as a breeding factory."

Sasuke seemed to hit a weak spot. Tenten was frozen from the sting and venom in Sasuke's words. She couldn't do anything but turn away and run, crying the entire way. Seeing his friend crying, Naruto got livid.

He created a Shadow Clone to go after her, while Naruto, in a testament to his mastery of Super Saiyan, powered up to his fullest in Super Saiyan in a split second, then dashed over to Sasuke and punched him in the face, then kicked him skyward to land in the pond near the Training Ground. Naruto dashed over there and grabbed Sasuke by his shirt and threw him back to the Training Ground and threw a few trees, only for him to be caught by Naruto. Naruto proceeded to choke the life out of Sasuke, saying "If you EVER, insult someone who's precious to me like that AGAIN, I promise that I will kill you, and leave not so much as an ash behind!"

Naruto then punched Sasuke in the gut so hard Sasuke started coughing up blood. Naruto then took off in the direction his clone went. Sakura ran over to Sasuke's body, and seeing Kakashi's inaction, yelled "Aren't you gonna do anything?"

Kakashi said "Sasuke never should've said something like that. That was long overdue in my eyes."

Naruto, using his dispelled Clone's memory, found where Tenten was. Tenten was in her room, crying on her bed. Naruto walked over to her and comforted her in her time of need. 10 minutes later, Tenten's crying was starting to die down. Naruto said "Tenten-chan, why did you let what he said get to you so much?"

Tenten said "All my life I've been trying to change peoples' views on Kunoichi. Kunoichi these days care more about their looks than their skills. I've been working on my skills day in and day out for years, trying to be like Tsunade Senju of the Sannin, but it seems that no mater how hard I try, no one will ever respect me in this job."

Naruto said "You've gained the respect of one Shinobi, I know."

Tenten said "Who?"

Naruto said "Me. You've earned my respect a thousand times over, Tenten-chan. I thought that Hinata-chan was the only Kunoichi who took her training seriously, but you train just as hard as she does. You've become proficient with at least 10 different weapons. Tenten-chan, you're a better Kunoichi than you think. And I know that if you keep going, you can actually give aspiring Kunoichi a real role model."

Tenten, whose sniffling started to lessen said "What about Tsunade-sama?"

Naruto said "You mean that drunken old gambler? Yeah, that's a real role model. 'Look girls, train hard and dream big, and you can become as bad a gambler as I am!'"

Tenten laughed at Naruto's imitation of Tsunade. Naruto said "Seriously Ten-chan, Tsunade is not that good of a role model. You can give women a real idol to look up to. And you can count on me to support you."

Tenten hugged Naruto and said "Thanks, Naruto-kun."

Naruto said "No problem, Ten-chan. Now I gotta get home and get some sleep. I got a lot of D-ranks to finish up tomorrow. See ya later."

Naruto walked to the door, but before he could go out of it, Tenten said "Where are you going? Don't you remember the sword?"

Naruto tilted his head to the side and scratched his face, sheepishly saying "Oh yeah. I forgot."

Tenten said "Come on."

They went downstairs where Tenten went into the storage room and came out with a sword. The sword had a black handle with a green gem in the pommel. The guard of the sword came up in an arc-like motion with yellow lines going down it. The blade of the sword was 3 feet long and the handle was a foot long, making it four feet long in total.

(AN: This is the Ultimate Sword from Legend of Zelda, but the hilt is black and yellow instead of yellow and black. Zelda(dot)wikia(dot)com(slash)wiki(slash)Ultimate_Sword)

Naruto stared amazed at the sword, while Tenten said "Do you like it?"

Naruto said "I love it. Thanks, Ten-chan."

Tenten said "No problem. Thank you for helping around the store for a month. So I guess I'll see you later then?"

Naruto smiled and said "Sure. How about you come to Training Ground 8 sometime and train with me. My Kenjutsu skills still need some work."

Tenten said "Great! How about tomorrow?"

Naruto said "That's fine with me."

Naruto then walked out of the store and flew home, looking forward to tomorrow.

* * *

(End)


	8. Training Day

Okay guys, I'm finally back. I'm sorry, but real life decided to get in the way of my writing so I had to deal with it before I could get back to writing. But hopefully, I can start writing more. I recently got a laptop so I don't have to depend on my family's shitty ass computer for writing. Anyway, here's Chapter 8.

When Naruto awoke today, he woke up without the sun in his eyes for once. He went to the window in his room and looked out of it. Looking out at the village that would someday be his, Naruto felt something weird. …He felt calm. He felt peaceful. Naruto quickly got dressed and left his house, his head on only one thought.

'_I don't know what it is…but I feel like today will be a good day.'_

If Naruto knew what would happen today, he would've stayed home and hid underneath his bed.

Because of how peaceful it was, Naruto decided to walk to his Training Ground. While he was walking, he heard a familiar voice yell out "Naruto-kun!"

Turning around, Naruto saw Tenten rushing up behind him. Unknown to him, Naruto got a small smile on his face. He said "Ready to go, Ten-chan?"

Tenten smiled at Naruto's nickname for her and said "Sure."

Both of them were engaged in small talk throughout the walk to the training ground. When they got there, they saw that, like usual, Shino and Hinata had arrived early and were doing their own exercises. Seeing that everyone had already started, Naruto said "Okay then, let's get started."

Tenten answered by unsheathing her sword and dashing at Naruto. Naruto pulled out his own sword and blocked her attack. Tenten raised her knee and hit Naruto in the stomach, then jumped back and tried a slash at his knees. Naruto jumped to the side and tried to hit Tenten in the shoulder. But Tenten was too fast. She quickly rolled to the side and under his attack, then kicked him in the stomach.

After a few more strikes, all of Naruto's strikes had been easily evaded. Tenten decided to end his suffering with a quick slash to the knees, but Naruto jumped back and tried to slash her. The problem was that Naruto was nowhere near good enough to hit her. Tenten used the pommel of her sword to hit Naruto's hand, causing him to drop the sword. Tenten thought that would be the end of it, but Naruto charged her unarmed.

While he was running, he suddenly felt gravity take over. In his haste to attack Tenten, Naruto didn't realize that his sword was in the way. Naruto tripped over his sword and fell, taking Tenten along for the ride.

As they hit the ground, Tenten started snickering. Her snickering prompted Naruto to start, which quickly escalated into full-blown laughter. Their laughter drew the attention of Shino and Hinata, who didn't know that Tenten was there. Unfortunately for Tenten and Naruto, Shino and Hinata observed something that they didn't. Seeing this, Shino thought _'How will Hinata react to this?'_

Seeing how these two were laying, only one thought was running through Hinata's mind. _'Just who is this slut?'_

After Tenten's laughter died down, she tried to get up, but realized that Naruto was in her way. After that, she looked at the position they were in and got a fierce blush. Naruto was still laughing, not paying attention to anything until Tenten cleared her throat.

Looking down, Naruto realized the position they were in and jumped almost 10 feet in the air. Naruto then turned away with a small blush on his face with Tenten doing the same. Naruto heard someone clear their throat and looked to his right to see Shino standing there with a ghost of a smile on his face. Even worse, he saw Hinata standing there with her arms crossed and a glare that promised him pain.

Naruto looked into Hinata's eyes and thought _'Oh shit. She's gonna kill me.' _

Naruto nervously and quickly said "Tenten-chan, meet my team members. This is Shino."

Tenten exchanged greetings with Shino and shook his hand. Naruto then said, in the same manner "This is Hinata-chan, my girlfriend."

Tenten, who had a smile on her face, dropped her smile at Naruto's words. _'I forgot he had a girlfriend.'_

Tenten quickly hid her feelings and exchanged greetings with a reluctant Hinata. Naruto said "Tenten-chan here is helping me with my kenjutsu. Apparently I need a lot of work."

Tenten muttered "That's putting it mildly."

Naruto turned to Tenten and mockingly said "Haha." He turned back to his girlfriend and said "She could probably give you some pointers on your sword style too."

Hinata thought _'What makes him think this bimbo could teach me anything?'_

Hinata said "That's a pretty big 'probably' Naruto-kun."

Tenten narrowed her eyes and said "Exactly what do you mean by that?"

Hinata smiled a little, betraying the evil undertone of her words. "Well, Naruto-kun and I don't exactly fight the same. If we did fight, you could end up hurt."

Tenten adopted a smile on her face just like Hinata's. "I'm not so sure about that."

Listening to their dialogue, Shino could easily understand their real meanings behind the words. Looking over to Naruto, he saw that Naruto was watching them with a smile on his face. _'That doesn't surprise me. He thinks they're getting along well. That poor, ignorant fool.'_

Hinata said "I have my sword with me. How about a friendly spar?"

Tenten said "I would love that."

Both girls pulled out their swords and backed away from each other. As they were backing away, Naruto was thinking _'Okay, this is great. Both Hina-chan and Ten-chan are getting along well. I knew that this would be a good day.'_

The fight started with Hinata charging Tenten. Hinata held her sword with the tip pointed towards the ground and lowered to her hip. As she reached Tenten, Hinata turned the sword so the edge was facing up, getting ready to cut Tenten vertically in half. Tenten already had her sword at chest height, ready to block the attack. Before Hinata could bring her sword up, she jumped to the left and swung her sword up, the sword making a direct path for Tenten's neck.

Tenten was ready to block the blade, but the jump to the side surprised her. She barely got her blade up in time to block it. Tenten brought her leg up and buried her knee in Hinata's stomach, forcing her back a little. Tenten stepped forward and swung her sword in a horizontal slash, aiming for Hinata's stomach. Hinata jumped back to dodge the attack, then jumped forward to go for a diagonal slash. Tenten easily blocked the attack and pushed Hinata back. Tenten then lashed out with a kick that caught Hinata in the side.

Soon the swords were discarded and their fight devolved into a fistfight. It seemed that both Tenten and Hinata were evenly matched in speed. Hinata evaded every hit that Tenten threw, while Tenten did the same. Eventually Hinata landed a hit in Tenten's side while Tenten landed a hit on Hinata's stomach. Both hits caused a bruise to form. Before more could be formed, Kurenai arrived. Kurenai instructed the four members of the team to do a series of training exercises.

Kurenai said "Today, we'll start off with a light jog around the clearing. I think 10 should be okay."

The four started jogging. Naruto kept pace with Shino, making light conversation with him. Tenten and Hinata were a lot farther up. At first, they were keeping pace with each other. Hinata saw this, and decided to pull ahead a little bit. Tenten saw this and narrowed her eyes a little bit. Tenten increased her speed and pulled ahead of Hinata. Hinata saw this and pulled ahead of Tenten.

What started as a small jog turned into a full-on sprint. Around lap 2, they were going all out, keeping pace with each other. At lap 5, both girls started sweating and getting tired, feeling their jackets holding them down. Hinata unzipped her jacket and threw it to the side. Underneath it, she was wearing a tight black T-shirt.

In the race, Tenten started lagging behind Hinata. _'What the hell? I was just keeping pace with her!'_

Feeling a tightening in her chest, Tenten realized that her vest was restricting her from getting as much air as she could. Tenten unbuttoned the shirt she was wearing and was down to her white T-shirt that showed off her midriff. When that happened, Tenten easily caught up with Hinata.

Seeing the girls racing, Naruto stopped to watch, only to get an eyeful. _'DAMN! Where were the girls hiding those?' _Naruto had good reason to be shocked. Hinata and Tenten were… well endowed. Somehow, their jackets and vests had the unique ability to hide them and make them look like they were ordinary, when they probably were the most endowed of their age group. Hinata's were a little bigger, but Tenten's seemed to accentuate her curves better. Watching the girls in a foot race, it was easy to realize why Naruto was practically undressing them with his eyes. He is male, after all.

In his mind, he heard his mother chuckle. _"Naru-sochi, you're drooling."_

Naruto started turning red and closed his mouth. His gaze drifted to Shino who was staring at the exact same thing he was. He punched Shino in the shoulder and said "Hey! Stop staring at them, you pervert!"

Shino adjusted his shades on his face and said "This coming from the guy who was drooling a second ago."

Naruto decided to shut up and watch the race. Eventually, Hinata pulled ahead for the win. Kurenai then told the Genin to practice their Taijutsu.

Kurenai started sparring with Shino while Naruto sat down on the ground. Naruto started concentrating his energy, causing a swirl of energy to go around him. As this was going on, Hinata and Tenten were watching him. Naruto started growling as his energy rose and rose. Naruto quickly went to Super Saiyan and his power continued to rise. As the power got higher and higher, the wind tore his shirt off, exposing his muscled chest to the world.

Eventually, Naruto let out a loud yell and went into his Super Saiyan 2 state. Naruto stood up and started throwing punches and kicks to test his abilities in this form. Afterwards, Naruto felt someone staring at him. Turning around, he saw Hinata and Tenten both staring at him with a look that made him uncomfortable. _'I feel like a piece of meat.'_

Inside his mind, Kushina thought _'My baby boy already has two girls after him and he's only 13. He's gonna be as big a pervert as Jiraiya.' _

Naruto said "Tenten-chan, Hinata-chan, why are you two staring at me like that?"

The two girls quickly realized that they were looking at Naruto like they were hungry jackals, then realized that the other was doing it. They both started glaring at each other, while Naruto made an excuse to leave. "_Okaaaay _girls, I'm gonna…see how fast I can fly around the planet."

Naruto shot up and out of the area like a bat out of hell, leaving the two girls to glare at each other. When he returned 30 minutes later, the girls were still glaring at each other.

After a while, Kurenai told them to move on to kunai throwing. When they started Hinata landed 9 out of 10 of her kunai. After landing them, Hinata turned to Tenten and smugly said "Good luck beating that."

Tenten smirked and said "I can easily do that."

Both the girls had the same thought running through their mind. _'I'm not gonna let that slut beat me.'_

A voice in the back of Tenten's mind said _'Why are you competing with her?'_

Tenten argued _'She started it! She insulted my Kenjutsu!'_

The voice said back _'You ever think that maybe that's not why you're arguing?_

'_Why else?'_

'_Because of Naruto.'_

'_What about him?'_

'_Look at him.'_

Turning to Naruto, Tenten almost started drooling again. Since he came back from supposedly flying around the world, Naruto didn't put a shirt on. His upper body was easily seen by everyone in the clearing, including Tenten. Tenten thought _'Why the hell didn't I see that before! Wait a minute-what the hell did I just think?'_

'_That you wanna see what's underneath those pants.'_

'_What? Ugh, I'll deal with this later.'_

Tenten loosened her headband and put it over her eyes and tightened it. She picked up all 10 kunai and threw them at once. Each of them landed dead center. Naruto said "Damn! Good job Tenten-chan!"

Tenten loosened her headband and put it back on her forehead. She turned to Hinata and said "I guess those 'All-Seeing Eyes' of yours didn't help you see the target."

Hinata got mad and said "I'm getting tired of you, bitch!"

Naruto widened his eyes in surprise and whipped his head to Hinata. He spluttered out "What?"

Tenten narrowed her eyes in anger and said "What do y'know? Same here!"

Hinata started channeling ki into her hands while Tenten pulled out two kunai. Both girls started walking to each other, and only the intervention of Naruto and Kurenai stopped them from hurting each other. Naruto grabbed Hinata and Kurenai grabbed Tenten, both of them kicking and screaming about what ways they would maim each other. Kurenai held Tenten back and yelled "That's it! Training's over. Naruto, get Hinata out of here!"

Naruto started pulling Hinata back and out of the Training Ground. When they got away, Naruto said "Hina-chan, what the hell was that back there? Why were you trying to hurt Tenten-chan?"

Hinata said "That bitch started it. I'm just finishing it."

Naruto said "But you're the one who called her a bitch first."

Hinata said "W-w-What? You're taking her side? You're my boyfriend! You're supposed to support me!"

Naruto said "Hina-chan, you called her a bitch for no reason."

Hinata was about to say more, but she looked in Naruto's eyes. _'T-t-That look. …It's the same look he gets when he's defending me. I can't believe it, he's attracted to that whore!'_

Hinata muttered "I can't believe this." Hinata turned away and started walking away. She started searching for Tenten's ki, then started moving towards it. When she got there, she saw Tenten walking into her house.

Tenten walked into her uncle's shop and sat at the counter, thinking _'I can't believe it! What the fuck does that bitch think, attacking me like that! She's lucky I didn't shove a kunai in that eye of hers! …But I'll skin that slut later, for now, why was I thinking that stuff about Naru-kun?'_

That inner voice replied _'Maybe the same reason you just called him Naru-kun?'_

'_There's no way I like Naru-kun! He's in a relationship.'_

'_That makes him even more attractive.'_

'_What would I like about him anyway? That stupid, blonde, spiky hair of his. That stupid…smile of his. The way he encourages me to follow my dreams. Those heavenly muscles of his! Shit! I can't believe it. I'm actually attracted to Naru-kun.'_

Tenten let out a loud sigh, and thought _'But he's in a relationship with that bitch!'_

Behind her, her uncle said "Having trouble, honey?"

Tenten jumped in the air and said "It's Naruto-kun uncle. I think…I think that-"

Dustin said "You're attracted to him, aren't you?"

Tenten was shocked. She said "How do you know?"

Dustin said "You really didn't do anything to hide it. You blushed every time he came around. You would've had to be an idiot not to notice. But what about it?"

Tenten said "Did you know he had a girlfriend."

Dustin said "I knew. And I ask again, what about it?"

Tenten dejectedly said "I can't be with Naruto-kun if he's already in a relationship."

Dustin said "Who said the relationship will last, though?"

Tenten looked at her uncle weirdly and said "What do you mean?"

Dusting said "Not all relationships last. Are you gonna just give up on Naruto because he's with some other girl? When their relationship ends, what will happen then?"

Tenten sighed loudly and said "You're horrible, uncle. I'm going out."

Tenten left out of the store, only to run into Hinata. Seeing her, Tenten narrowed her eyes and said "What do _you _want?"

Hinata narrowed her eyes, but then she took a deep breath and calmed herself down. She said "I don't' know your connection to Naruto, or how deep your feelings for him are. But let's make one thing clear. You do you have feelings for Naruto-kun and I know about it. But Naruto Uzumaki is my man, not yours! From the top of his head to the bottom of his feet, he is mine! I was the one who was there for him every second of his life, and I will continue to be for the rest of it. I know that Naruto-kun likes you, so for his sake I won't hurt you. But let's make one thing clear."

Hinata took a step closer to Tenten, narrowed her eyes slightly, and said "If you want my boyfriend, you're gonna have to fight me for him. And that is one fight you won't win."

Tenten narrowed her eyes and said "Too bad for you, that decision isn't yours to make. It's up to Naruto-kun. I know that he likes you, so for him, I'll ease up. But the second you mess up, I'll take my chance."

Tenten then turned away from Hinata and walked away, leaving Hinata there to contemplate what she said.

(With Naruto)

After Hinata ran out on him, Naruto was confused. Why did Hinata mutter 'I can't believe this' before she left? Why was she so pissed? Why did she get into a fight with Tenten? Naruto had a lot of thing to figure out, so he went to the place he always went when he had to figure something out.

He went to the Ichiraku Ramen Shop.

As Naruto was sitting there eating dinner, he kept wondering what he could do. _'If only I could understand the mind of women.'_

Naruto picked up a bunch of noodles with his chopsticks, but froze in midair. Naruto realized that he had an answer to the question. _'Mom!'_

"_Agh."_ Came the reply from Kushina. "_Naru-sochi, you don't have to yell. I can hear you just fine."_

'_Mom, I need to ask you something.'_

"_You want my help in explaining what happened between Hinata-chan and Tenten-chan?"_

'_Yea, how did-'_

"_Son, everything you see, I do too. And I mean _everything."

'_Okay, so can you help me?'_

Kushina cheerfully said "_No."_

'_WHAT?'_

"_I'm not gonna help you. Figure this one out on your own."_

Naruto mockingly thought _'Thanks a lot, mom.'_

"_Anytime, sochi."_

Naruto angrily ate his ramen, then got started on his way home. As he was going, Naruto heard someone familiar calling out his name. Turning around, he saw his friend Ino. "Hey Ino!"

Ino said "Hello Naruto. How are you?"

Naruto cheerily said "I'm fine. How are you doing with the training schedule me and Hina-chan gave you?"

A couple days after the Genin Tournament, Naruto, Hinata, and Ino got together to construct a schedule for Ino on what to train in. Ino thanked them and got to work on it diligently. A little while after, Naruto spoke to Shikamaru about Ino's progress on it. Shikamaru said that Ino never missed a day with it.

Ino said "I'm doing fine, thanks again. But I need your help. I'm trying to go over the Academy's taijutsu style, but I need a sparring partner."

Naruto shrugged and said "I'll help. I don't have anything to do today anyway."

Naruto and Ino both left to go to a nearby training ground. As they arrived, Naruto said "Okay Ino-chan, get into the Academy taijutsu stance."

Ino entered the stance, causing Naruto to move closer to her. He said "You have it wrong, Ino-chan."

Naruto then grabbed her elbow and the lower part of her forearm. He pushed he forearm in while pulling the elbow down. "Your arm is too stretched out. You won't be able to get the proper amount of power into your punches."

Naruto then dropped to his knees and grabbed one of her legs. He dragged it out to another position, saying "Your legs aren't spread enough to move quickly."

Ino blushed at the close contact, but then she smirked evily and said "Wow Naruto-kun. Any higher and you would've owed me dinner."

Naruto was confused at Ino's statement, until he realized that one of his hands was on her lower thigh. Naruto quickly pulled his hand away and started blushing. Ino started giggling at his blush and said "I'm kidding Naruto-kun."

Naruto pouted a little and said "Stop it."

Ino said "Come on, let's keep going."

Naruto quietly agreed and they both started sparring. After 20 minutes of sparring, Naruto suggested they take a break. Naruto sat on the ground and said "Whew! That felt good. I like seeing that you could keep going the entire time."

Ino got the same smirk on her face as before and said "I think you like seeing me all hot and wet like this more."

Naruto again blushed at her innuendo while Ino started laughing at him. Naruto said "Why do you keep teasing me so much?"

Ino said through her laughter "Because seeing your reactions is so funny."

Naruto said "Whatever Ino-chan. Well, you got a good grasp on the fighting style. All you need is experience."

Ino stopped laughing and said "Thank you so much, Naruto-kun. I'll find a way to repay you someday."

Naruto started waving his hands and shaking his head. "No, no. You don't need to. I don't want you to."

Ino got enraged and her head expanded to 10 times its' original size. She yelled "Well too bad, I want to! You'll take what I give you and like it!"

Naruto fearfully said "Yes, Ino-chan."

Ino's head became its regular size and she cheerily said "Good. Now I'm about to go home. Good night, Naruto-kun."

Ino then pecked Naruto on the cheek and started walking away. Naruto absentmindedly touched the spot where she kissed him and stared at her as she left. Feeling his eyes on her, Ino started swaying her hips as she walked, causing Naruto's eyes to widen to the size of dinner plates. Naruto's jaw started drifting down south as he thought _'Her ass is better than Hina-chan's or Ten-chan's.'_

He heard his mother laughing very loudly in his mind. She said _"Naru-shochi, you're drooling again."_

Naruto quickly shut his mouth and took to the skies, trying to get home before something else happened to him. Naruto quickly got home and closed the door. Naruto then decided to try and work on his demonic chakra and his Super Saiyan form. Naruto sat down and tried to meditate, but he couldn't clear his mind. It was filled with images of Tenten, Hinata, and Ino. His mind stayed that way the entire night, even in his dreams.

(End)

Yea I know, it's mostly dialogue. But the next chapter will be filled with action. Writing this chapter was the hardest for me since I prefer to not write romance and relationships, but for the sake of the story, I had to. Anyways, see you next chapter.


	9. one guy, two girls, 3 times the problems

2 weeks. 2 weeks had passed since the meeting of Hinata Hyuuga and Tenten. What was supposed to be a simple meeting turned into a physical confrontation that left Naruto Uzumaki stuck in the middle. Naruto tried and tried to have the girls make peace, but they didn't hear him. Sadly, it escalated into a fight between Naruto and Hinata.

I wish that I could say they resolved their issues, but that would be a lie. Naruto and Hinata still weren't speaking. Well, Hinata wasn't speaking to Naruto. Naruto still didn't know what the problem was, and Hinata wasn't in the mood for helping him. Seeing as she wasn't speaking to him, he decided to throw himself into his training, mainly his Reiki Techniques. He got more and more proficient with the Reiki Gun. He could now fire 8 shots a day. Also, he started getting more and more proficient with his sword and his Reiki Sword. His Reiki Sword was getting more and more dense, now being able to match most swords. His Kenjutsu was getting better also. From what Tenten said about it, he was close to halfway done with the mastery of the Basic Style.

This morning, Naruto decided to arrive early to his training ground to get in a little practice. Naruto sat down and started to meditate, sending him into his mindscape.

Naruto decided to change his mindscape around since the last time. Instead of a damp cage, it was for the most part a white void until Naruto or Kushina decided to create something. Because of the fact that Kushina was a permanent visitor of her son's mindscape, part of it was changed to suit her needs. But after experimenting more with the mindscape, Naruto found out that his mind was completely different than the real world. For example, he never ran out of energy while he was there. Also, he didn't need to eat, drink, sleep or relieve himself. Also, he could manipulate his healing factor to be from damn near nonexistent to instant cellular regeneration. Because of these factors, his mindscape was damn near made to be trained in.

When he arrived in his mindscape, Naruto made a dojo appear. At the Dojo, Naruto made 10 Shadow Clones. The shadow Clones jumped back and surrounded Naruto. At an unseen signal, all of the clones made a Reiki Sword and charged Naruto. Naruto waited until the last second, then jumped over the one in front of him. Naruto turned around and shot a Reiki Gun at the clone. Instead of jumping out of the way, the clone decided to utilize a new technique of his. The clone dispelled its Reiki Sword and held its hands up. When the blast came, it looked like the clone stopped it with its bare hands, but it was actually a thick coating of Reiki around its hands that stopped the blast. The clone then reversed the technique and sent it spiraling back to Naruto. Naruto quickly made a Reiki Sword and used it to cut the Reiki Gun attack in half. Naruto then jumped high in the air and came down on his clone. The added power of gravity crushed the clone's Reiki sword and Naruto's own. Naruto twisted to hit the clone with a heel kick, but where the clone's head originally was, there was now a Reiki Gun blast there.

It turns out that another clone decided to blast through one of its brothers to reach Naruto. It doesn't take a genius to realize that a Reiki Gun blast to the foot hurt like hell. Naruto could barely put any weight on the foot, so he decided to levitate in place until his foot healed.

Naruto's next clone decided to rush him and engage him in Taijutsu. The clone rushed forward and kicked Naruto in the head. Naruto used the momentum from the clone's kick to twist and kick the clone, causing it to dispel. Before Naruto could do anything, he heard a cry from behind him. "Spirit Shot!"

Naruto turned around like lightning and shot a Reiki Gun to cancel out the spirit Shot. Naruto then changed his hand from an imaginary gun to an open palm. Naruto yelled out "Spirit Shot!"

The black ball of energy sailed forward, only to come face-to-face with another Reiki Gun. Just like before, they cancelled each other out. Naruto flew forward, hoping to get the drop on the clone, only to take a Reiki Gun blast to the face.

The blast burned off a lot of the skin on Naruto's face and sent him crashing into the wall of the Dojo. _'Shooting a second Reiki Gun in the shadow of the first. I gotta remember that one.'_

Naruto stood back up, the damage from the Reiki Gun already starting to heal. _'Good thing I can boost my healing factor in here. If not, that would've taken a month to heal.'_ Naruto saw another Reiki Gun blast shot at him, so he held his hand out and caught the blast by reinforcing his hand with Reiki. Naruto ran forward, still holding the blast in his hand like a baseball. Seeing one of his clones going for a sweep, Naruto jumped over the clone and used his empty hand to shoot it with a Reiki Gun blast.

As he landed, Naruto threw the Reiki Gun blast in his hand at the clone that shot it at him. He backed it up with a Reiki Gun Blast of his own. The two attacks collided and joined together, easily blowing through the Reiki Shield that the clone tried to put up. Naruto had little time to rest though as he was cut on the back by a clone's Reiki Sword. Naruto jumped forward and rolled away from the clone to get room to think, only to cross swords with another clone. Naruto saw another clone coming his way, so he pushed his clone's Reiki Sword back. He slashed the clone through the midsection, then had to coat his hand in a Reiki Shield to catch the sword of the next clone. He formed a Reiki Sword in his hand and pointed the sword at the clone's gut. Naruto quickly extended the sword through the clone's stomach.

Naruto saw a shadow overtake him, and looked up to see a clone in the air with its sword ready to hit him. Naruto brought his Reiki Sword up to block, but his sword was shattered along with the Clone's. The clone landed and kneed Naruto in the gut, then kicked him back. The clone reformed its' Reiki Sword and jumped into the air to put extra power in its' downward slash. Naruto rolled back from the slash to avoid it, then coated his foot in Ki and kicked the clone in the head, dispelling it. Naruto looked around, only to jump up to avoid a slash form a clone's sword. Naruto flipped, landed, then coated his index finger in ki and yelled out "Bullet Shot!"

Naruto shot off a small little bullet of ki at the clone, which was immediately followed by an innumerable amount of them. The clone quickly made a Reiki Shield around his hands and started to block all of the shots. Naruto used his other hand to shoot off a Spirit Shot at the clone's feet. The blast kicked up a lot of dirt, giving Naruto cover to rush past the clone's defenses and punch it through the gut. Naruto took a big breath and thought _'7 down, three to go.'_

Naruto rushed another clone, only to have to jump as the clone shot a Reiki Gun at his feet. When Naruto landed, the clone was gone. Naruto was about to turn around looking for the clone, but felt a fist impact with the back of his head. Naruto turned around to see that one of his clones had already formed a Reiki Sword and was swinging it at his head. Naruto ducked down to avoid it, but didn't avoid the kick another clone gave him to the face. Naruto was knocked back from the kick, but easily recovered and flipped over. Naruto stood up getting ready to shoot off a Reiki Gun, but heard three words that made his blood run cold. "Spirit Tag, Ignite!"

Naruto stared straight as he could see a faint yellow glow coming from the space dead center between his eyes. He saw that the glow was increasing and muttered "You gotta be kiddi-"

That's as far as he got before the Spirit Tag blew up and almost blew his face apart. Naruto stood up, having half of his eyes vaporized. His nose was gone completely. The bones of his face were also exposed to the air. Naruto jumped away from the clones to get some room to wait for the wound to heal, but realized that he could only see two clones. Naruto looked around for the last one, only to feel someone grab his ankles. Naruto's eyes widened as he tried to squirm out of the hold, but couldn't. Naruto could only look as the two clones charged at him with gigantic grins on their faces. Their feet were glowing yellow as they were charged up with ki. Naruto closed his eyes and braced himself for the pain as the clones flipped over and dropkicked Naruto simultaneously. Naruto went flying, dragging the clone on his ankles along with him. As he was falling through the air, the clone let Naruto's ankles go and hit him with a brutal axe kick to the stomach, sending him on a collision course with the ground. As he struck, he kicked up a lot of dirt and caused a smokescreen to appear. The smokescreen only got bigger as the clones yelled "Spirit Tags, Ignite!"

The gigantic explosion that happened caused a huge crater to kick up. When the smoke cleared, Naruto stood up and got to his feet. His chest was blown to shreds with everything being horribly burnt. Naruto thought _'Thank goodness this happened in my mindscape where it could heal. I guess 10 clones was kinda overdoing it.'_

Naruto dispelled his last clones and wobbled back up to his feet. Seeing as some time had passed, Naruto decided to leave his mindscape and check on the outside world.

(Real World)

As Naruto pulled himself out of his mind, he groaned as he felt phantom pains from where he was hurt during the fight. Naruto stood up and looked around the training ground to see that Shino had already arrived and started on some light training to warm up for their training today. He looked to Hinata to see that she was looking away from him with a scowl on his face. Naruto said "Hello, Hina-chan."

Hinata stayed looking in the direction she was, not even moving an inch. Naruto thought _'Damn. What did I do to make her so pissed at me? I hate having her be angry with me.'_

Naruto continued to make small talk with Shino while trying (and failing miserably) to start a conversation with Hinata. Each failed attempt depressed him more and more. Eventually Kurenai came to end this depressing cycle by taking them to the Hokage Tower to get a mission. When they got to the Hokage Tower, they were greeted by a cheerful Sandaime Hokage, but his cheery mood instantly dropped when he laid eyes on them. He thought _'They're still fighting about this? (sigh) Youth really is a bittersweet thing. Young people can do so much more, but they're so damn stupid!'_

Sarutobi said "Okay Team 8, here's your mission for today. A friend of mine named Leyonarudo is designing a new type of trap for the village. He is scheduled to demonstrate it for the Konoha Council on Saturday, but he said that he's having a little trouble completing it on time. He needs a team to help him complete it and run the prototype."

Naruto's eyes widened and he yelled "You need us to be guinea pigs? That is just messed up, Ojii-san!"

Sarutobi laughed at Naruto's outlandish reaction and said "Don't worry. I spoke to Leyonarudo and he said that it was completely safe for you guys. It'll be armed when you guys are completely safe and away from the trap. Now, do you accept the mission?"

After discussing it between them, they all agreed to do it. Sarutobi said "Good. Now if that's all, you are dismissed."

Team 8 nodded and left out of the Hokage Tower to meet an oddly dressed man. He was wearing maroon colored clothes with a maroon cape, and a puffy hat with a feather sticking out of it. The shoulders of his shirt were puffy. His beard was really scraggy and was really long, with his hair being the same way. He also had gray strands of hair and small liver spots on his face. When he saw them, he bowed to them and said in a very strange accent "Hello. My name is Leyonarudo. Are you the team that the Hokage sent to help me?"

Kurenai said "Yes we are."

Leyonarudo led the group to a clearing right outside of the village. When they got there, Hinata said "So, tell us about this trap of yours, Leyonarudo-san?"

Leyonarudo said "Well, I call it the Bouncing Betty. As for what it does, I want to leave that as a surprise for you guys to see. I already have one set up. I just need someone to activate it."

Kurenai looked to Naruto and said "Naruto, send a Shadow Clone to activate the trap."

Naruto shrugged and made a Shadow Clone. Leyonarudo instructed the clone to walk forward, which it did. When the clone walked 100 feet away, Leyonaruto started to smirk. Suddenly, a piece of the ground erupted, and something shot out of the new hole. The thing, which was an exploding tag wrapped around a rubber ball, exploded, taking Naruto's clone with it.

Naruto's eyes were widened as his clone was destroyed. Naruto said "Holy shit that was awesome!"

Shino said "Leyonarudo-san, how does this thing work exactly?"

Leyonarudo smirked and said "That's the genius part. The design of the Bouncing Betty is so simple. One weak exploding tag is put on the ground that is activated when you step on it. That weak exploding tag knocks away the dirt and activates the one under it. That one explodes and sends the last explosive flying into the air. After the last explosive reaches chest level, it detonates, not only exploding to kill or stun any nearby enemies, but it also blows up whatever it's wrapped around."

Naruto narrowed his eyes in confusion and asked "How would that do damage? You had it wrapped around a rubber ball."

Leyonarudo said "That's because I rigged this one for purely aesthetic purposes, not to kill. Imagine what would happen if it was wrapped around the inside of a steel tube? Or if we balled up the exploding tag and put a sealing tag around it filled with metal shards?"

Shino said "The leftovers from the explosion would fly out and do even more damage. Ingenious."

Kurenai said "Leyonarudo-san, it looks like you have everything under control. What do you need us for?"

Leyonarudo started to scratch the back of his head and said "That's the problem. The Konoha Council wants me to make a lot of these and I don't have the time. I need help with it."

Hinata said "I'm curious. How long have you been making this for the village?"

Leyonarudo said "6 months, give or take a week."

The genin's eyes widened and they all thought the same thing. _'This guy is lazy as hell.'_

Kurenai said "You heard the guy. Let's get started."

The four groups all started to grab small sheets of paper and started writing seals. Seeing as none of them knew how to seal things up, they depended on Leyonarudo to tell them what to do. Leyonarudo gave each of them a small metal bin full of small metal pieces like nails, knife tips, or even broken pieces of chain mail. The ninja all took two handfuls of the shrapnel and sealed it into a tag. They then prepared the trap like Leyonarudo did.

After 30 minutes of doing this, Naruto ran out of shrapnel to make the sealing tags with. Naruto looked around for Leyonarudo and saw him helping Hinata with a seal. Naruto decided to avoid an awkward moment with Hinata and just look around for shrapnel. Naruto wasn't watching where he was going and ended up walking through the woods looking for shrapnel.

Back at the testing ground, Leyonarudo went over to Naruto's original position to check up on how far he was with the Bouncing Betty's. When he got there, he saw that Naruto was nowhere to be seen. He turned around and said "Kurenai-san? Do you know where Naruto-san went?"

Hinata darkly thought _'Probably out tongue-kissing that slut Tenten.'_

Kurenai said "I saw him walk into the forest a minute or two ago, so I thought he was going to relieve himself."

Leyonarudo's eyes widened a little and he worryingly said "Which direction did he go?"

Kurenai pointed southwest, and Leyonarudo's face went pale as his eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. Shino said "Something's wrong, isn't it?"

Leyonarudo said "We have to find Naruto, now!"

Kurenai took off running as Shino and Leyonarudo followed her. Hinata was a step behind Kurenai. Even though she was mad at Naruto, she still cared for him, not that she'd ever admit it.

With Naruto, he kept looking around for shrapnel and found some, but then he heard Leyonarudo yell "Naruto! Do not move a muscle."

Naruto turned around to see Leyonarudo, Kurenai, Shino, and Hinata running towards him. Naruto said "What's the matter, Leyonarudo? I was just looking for more shrapnel to use."

Leyonarudo yelled "Whatever you do, DO NOT MOVE!"

Naruto stepped forward saying "What's so dangerous about mov-"

Naruto was unfortunately interrupted by a small, almost inaudible 'pop'. Unfortunately for Naruto, he was right in the middle of Leyonarudo's new pet project. Instead of using just one Bouncing Betty, Leyonarudo took a bunch of them and put them in a circle. Then, he would tie all of the trip tags together so that when one would activate, all of them would. Also, in the center of the circle, he put a trip tag tied to all of them.

Bad news, Naruto just activated the trap.

Even worse, all of the Bouncing Betties were live.

Each of the Bouncing Betties popped up and exploded, engulfing Naruto in a huge explosion and blocking him from view. Seeing this, Hinata couldn't stop herself from yelling out "NARUTO-KUN!"

Hinata was the first to reach Naruto and thanked goodness that he wasn't dead. But just because he wasn't dead didn't mean he was in good condition either. Naruto had a bunch of pieces of shrapnel in his body. There were even some parts of his body where the shrapnel went completely through. Also, his eardrums were bleeding horribly, as were all of the other wounds.

Hinata cradled Naruto's head in her lap as he woke up from unconsciousness. He saw Hinata above him and weakly said "Does this mean you forgive me, Hina-chan?"

Hinata was about to smile, but then she remembered what she was mad at him for. She dropped his head and started walking away. Naruto's head hit the ground and weakly bounced. Naruto then stood up and stared at Hinata. _'Is she ever gonna tell me what it was that I did wrong?'_

Leyonarudo reached Naruto and said "Are you okay Naruto? I'm sorry that this happened. I didn't mean for you to get caught in this."

Naruto said "It's okay Leyonarudo, I'm fine. But Kurenai-sensei, can I take the rest of the day off. I think I need to sleep this off."

Kurenai would usually be rushing him to the hospital right now, but Naruto had a tendency to heal very quickly. She wouldn't be surprised to see him completely fine tomorrow. Kurenai said "Ok Naruto. Go home and get some rest. We'll be at the training ground tomorrow morning."

Naruto took off and flew home without a word. On the way, Naruto decided against just going home. He decided to go to Tenten's house to train in Kenjutsu. When he got there, he went into the store to see Dustin manning the desk. Naruto said "Hey Dustin, where's Tenten?"

Dustin said to Naruto, in a quizzical tone "Didn't she tell you?"

Naruto adopted a quizzical look on his face and said "Tell me what?"

Dustin said "She's got a mission. She's out of the village right now. She should be back in a couple days."

Naruto sighed and said "Okay then. I'll see you later."

Naruto then left Dustin's house and decided to go home. When he arrived, Naruto sat and decided to work on his Reiki techniques more. _'My Reiki Gun and Sword are basically complete. All I need is experience with the attacks. The only thing that I haven't done yet is…the Demonic transformation.'_

Naruto sighed. He was hoping to hold off on that a little bit more. Even though he was half demon, he didn't like to think about it that much. The fact that the villagers had been calling him a demon, then finding out that he actually was one, had him a little wary of taking his demonic form. Taking the form in his mind was no problem, but in the real world, there would be no turning back. Transforming meant accepting his demonic heritage and everything that came with it. And honestly, he had no idea what would happen when he took his form. He could end up killing himself, or he could end up being stronger than ever. _'I guess I won't know until I find out.'_

Naruto closed his eyes and entered a semi-meditative state. Naruto mentally searched the area around his heart where his pool of Youki was located. Naruto took a hold of it, and flooded his entire body with it, starting the transformation. The problem with the transformation was that Naruto didn't take into account the fact that he could feel the pain of it.

Naruto took in a deep gulp of air in surprise as he felt his heart stop. After his heart stopped, Naruto ran to the couch and grabbed onto a pillow. He put the pillow into his mouth and bit down on it as hard as he could and screamed as the transformation happened. Naruto felt his nails harden and grow, then sharpen into claws. His canine teeth started to get larger and Naruto could feel them as they tore the gums around them, and tore into the pillow he was biting onto. He felt his ears push themselves back into his body as pointed fox ones sprouted out of the top of his head. He felt his body grow taller and leaner as the transformation went on. His previously spiky black hair fell victim to gravity as it lay along his body. His hair sprouted out of his scalp and grew out, but instead of black roots coming out of his head, they were red. His multicolored hair grew out until the border between black and red reached Naruto's shoulders. When it reached it's destination, the black part of his hair fell off, leaving him with a fully red mane. His pupils also became slits and the iris turned red. He also felt all his wounds from the Bouncing Betty close up.

After a moment or two without pain, Naruto let loose a breath that he didn't even know he was holding, thinking that the pain was over. But as soon as that thought passed his mind, Naruto felt a sharp pain at his tailbone. Naruto grabbed the pillow again and screamed into it as he felt a tail sprout out. The tail was the same shade of red as his hair with a white tip. Eventually, the pain passed as Naruto stood up on weak knees and wobbly feet. He hobbled himself over to the kitchen to get a glass of water.

After drinking the glass, Naruto thought _'Okay. I've taken my demon form, now it's time to train in it.'_

'_Naruto! Wait!'_

'_What's the matter, okaa-san?'_

'_Sochi, you have to hold off on training. This form is completely different than your human form! And you're using different energy too. Try to learn to walk before you try to use the Reiki Gun. Get used to just living in this form before you fight.'_

Naruto sighed and mentally said _'Fine then.'_

Naruto backed away from the window and decided to clean up his house. As he was cleaning, he felt it getting easier and easier to move in his demon form. After cleaning his house, Naruto decided to clean out his closet. As he was cleaning it out, he came across an old present that the Sandaime gave him. It was a piece of technology from Yuki no Kuni called a radio. It picked up special signals from places called 'radio stations' that played music. Radios weren't really widespread because most of the world was focused on war instead of recreation. Also, they didn't exactly come with instruction manuals and it was damn near impossible to find someone who knew how to work one. Naruto didn't know how to operate one either, but he was bored enough to fiddle with it until he could find out.

After pressing a button that said 'Power', Naruto started fiddling with the knobs, seeing a digital dial of numbers changing as he did. Naruto fiddled with the antennas and knobs until he heard a voice. The person said "Hey, hey, hey everybody. This is DJ Green Rabbit playing the jams of yesterday, today, and tomorrow. All the lovebirds out there, listen up. It's time to grab that special person and hold them tight, 'cuz this next song is for everyone who has ever been apart from that loved one. This song comes from my man Bill Withers and it's called 'Ain't no Sunshine.' You heard it here, only on 109.3, The Biz."

Naruto groaned outloud and thought _'Playing a love song while I'm going through this shit with Hinata? Someone up there must hate my guts.'_

(Ain't no Sunshine by Bill Withers)

**Ain't no sunshine when she's gone. **

**It's not warm when she's away. **

**Ain't no sunshine when she's gone **

**And she's always gone too long, **

**Anytime she goes away. **

**Wonder this time where she's gone, **

**Wonder if she's gone to stay **

**Ain't no sunshine when she's gone **

**And this house just ain't no home,**

**Anytime she goes away. **

**And I know, **

**I know,(X 25)**

As Naruto started listening to the song, he started nodding his head to it little by little as the message started to sink in to him. This song had basically summed up how he felt these past two weeks. He felt like nothing mattered and that everything was just gloomy. Subconsciously, Naruto started tapping his foot to the beat and started humming along with it, even singing along with part of it.

**Hey, I ought to leave the young thing alone, **

**But ain't no sunshine when she's gone, **

**Ain't no Sunshine when she's gone, **

**only darkness everyday. **

**Ain't no sunshine when she's gone, **

**And this house just ain't no home,**

**Anytime she goes away. **

**Anytime she goes away. **

**Anytime she goes away. **

**Anytime she goes away. **

As the song started fading, Naruto got to thinking. _'This song is completely true. Things haven't been the same since Hinata has been mad at me. I just wish I knew what the hell I did wrong? But I can't keep living like this. I miss having her beside me. …I miss being able to hold her and kiss her. ...That settles it, I need my girlfriend back. Tomorrow, I'll pull her aside and talk to her about this. And I won't take no for an answer. By this time tomorrow, I'll have my girl back.'_

After making up his mind about the problem with his girlfriend, Naruto went back to listening to music and getting used to his demonic form.

(The next day)

Naruto woke up tomorrow morning feeling refreshed and determined. Today was the day that he puts this whole thing with Hinata to rest. Today was the day that he got his girlfriend back. Today was…the day he woke up with a tail.

Naruto, who was still trying to wake up, thought _'Ok, I must've fallen asleep in my demonic form. It's nothing. I'll just transform back after I shower.' _

Naruto went into the shower and bathed himself. After he bathed himself, Naruto walked up to the mirror in the shower and started drying himself, making sure not to miss cleaning out his round, oval shaped ears that were located on the side of his head, getting those-_'Wait a minute, what the hell? If my ears are regular, then how do I still have my-'_

Naruto picked up a small hand mirror, turned around, and used it to look at the location of his tailbone. Right there was a tail. It wasn't puffy and fluffy like his regular one. It was thin, fuzzy, and all brown, like a monkey's tail. Naruto thought _'What the hell happened? Why the fuck do I have a tail? Why are you not helping me answer these damn questions mom?'_

Kushina's voice appeared in his head saying _'I'm thinking, genius. And watch your mouth around me. …I can't think of an idea, except that maybe taking your demonic form must've unlocked a recessive gene.'_

'_But where could the gene for having a monkey's tail come from?'_

Kushina replied _'Most likely from your Saiyan heritage. Besides you, your father was the only Saiyan in existence since the time of your ancestor Vegeta, and even then, Minato-koi was only half-Saiyan. For all we know, the Saiyans could've had tails.'_

'_That's all fine and dandy, but what the hell am I supposed to do now that I have a tail half as long as my leg?'_

Kushina said _'Hmm, maybe you could tuck it into your pantleg or something? Or maybe you could wrap it around your waist like a belt.'_

'_To hell with that. Why don't I just try to cut it off or something?'_

'_Wait Naruto, don't!' _But Kushina's warning fell on deaf ears as Naruto went and tried to cut his tail. Naruto grabbed a knife and then reached behind himself to grab his tail, but as soon as he touched his tail, Naruto felt a sharp pain shoot up his back. Naruto couldn't help but yell out loud. The pain forced Naruto to his knees as he yelled "Damnit! That hurt more than growing it out did!"

Inside the mindscape, Kushina was laughing her ass off. She said _'I tried to warn you, but you didn't listen. If your tail sprouted around the same time as your demonic transformation, then it would be very, very sensitive.'_

Naruto sarcastically replied _'Thanks for the heads-up, mom. Now if you excuse me, I have to find out how to hide this thing.'_

After debating his options, Naruto decided to tuck it around his waist like a belt. The only problem with that was that he wasn't exactly dressed. So Naruto went back to his bathroom to change, only to do a double take as he looked at his reflection. _'What the hell! First I have a tail, now I have red streaks in my hair? What's next, a tattoo on my ass?'_

Just like Naruto said, he had red streaks in his hair. The new streaks were a deep crimson color, just about half a shade lighter than blood. Naruto thought _'Another recessive gene, mom?'_

Kushina replied _'Probably not. I think this is because of how you transformed into your demonic state. You flooded your body with Youki, which made the transformation quick, but it also might've caused the red hair. Besides, it doesn't look that bad. You can pass it off as a new hairstyle.'_

Naruto sighed and thought _'Welcome to this great big ball of shit I call a life. But I'll handle the rest of this later. Right now, I gotta get dressed and get my girlfriend back.'_

Naruto finished drying himself off from his shower and put on his clothes. After the Genin Selection Tournament, Naruto decided to update his wardrobe a bit. Naruto knew that in a real battle, his old clothes wouldn't provide a scrap of defense. So Naruto decided to change his clothes to something that was more suited for a fight. Instead of his old orange jumpsuit pants, Naruto now wore black pants and sandals. The pants fit Naruto tight enough that they wouldn't get in the way, but they also weren't so tight that they cut off circulation to his lower body. Also, they were more elastic than regular denim, making them harder to tear and making it easier for Naruto to use his full range of motion. Also, it had built in pouches for his kunai, shuriken, and various other pockets for other things to go in. To accommodate for his tail, Naruto had to cut a hole in the back of the pants at his tailbone area and maneuver his tail through it. From there, he had it wrapped around his waist like a weird belt.

Naruto also had on a white tanktop that was much thicker than a usual tanktop. It wasn't gonna be able to stop a kunai for sure, but it could slow them down so that they wouldn't puncture the body as much as normal. Also, the tanktop could absorb pressure, allowing it to absorb many weak hits, and weaken stronger hits.

Also, Naruto had on black fingerless gloves. Before Naruto made a change to them, they were not unlike the fingerless gloves seen on the standard Jounin outfit. Now, instead of the metal plates on the back of the hand, the metal plates were taken out and used to coat the knuckles of the gloves.

To finish his new look, Naruto wore a black jacket. And like all of his clothing, it was specially modified for a fighter. The inside of the jacket was lined with chain mail to absorb and deflect sword strikes. Also, his jacket had various pockets to fit things in. The jacket came down to about mid-thigh, which made it easier for Naruto to hide his tail.

To top it off, Naruto also had a white strap going from his right shoulder to his left hip and going around his back. Attached to the strap on his back was his sword. Seeing as his entire wardrobe was on and he had no more surprises from his demonic transformation, Naruto decided to open his window and fly out of it towards the training ground.

When Naruto got to the training ground, he saw that Shino and Hinata were already there. Naruto touched down and made a beeline for Hinata. Right before he could speak to her, he heard Kurenai's voice behind him say "Good Morning, team."

Outwardly, Naruto smiled and said "Good Morning, Kurenai-sensei."

Inwardly, he yelled _'FUUUUUUCCCCCCCCKKKKKKk!'_

Naruto heard Kushina's voice say _'What did I tell you about cussing?'_

Naruto replied _'Sorry, Mom. …Wait a minute, this is my fucking mind and I'll say whatever the hell I damn well please!'_

Naruto then felt a sharp pain in his head and screamed and fell to his knees. Kushina said _'Maybe that'll teach you to watch your mouth around me.' _

Naruto grumbled and muttered _'Whatever.'_

Seeing Naruto drop to his knees, Kurenai ran over to him and said "Naruto, are you okay?"

Naruto said "I'm fine. I still got a headache from the Bouncing Betty thing yesterday."

Kurenai said "Are you sure that you don't need some more rest? You were pretty banged up after that Bouncing Betty thing."

Naruto said "Don't worry about me, Kurenai-sensei. I'm completely fine."

Kurenai uneasily said "If you're sure. Well then, let's be on our way. We're going to do another mission today."

Naruto nodded and turned to Hinata's direction, only to see her already gone. Naruto started to feel down again, but his mom said _'It's alright Naruto. You still have the rest of the day. And besides, you're gonna be on a mission. She'll be around for the rest of the day.'_

Naruto took off to the skies and flew to the Hokage Tower. When they arrived, Sarutobi said "Team 8, as usual, you are the first to be here, so that means you have the first choice of missions. You can walk dogs for the Inuzuka's, help clean up a training grounds, pick up the trash on the-"

The Hokage was interrupted as a pigeon flew through the window. At first, Sarutobi was about to try and shoo it away, but then he saw a rolled up paper tied to its' leg. Sarutobi took the paper and started to read it. The more he read, the more serious he became, until eventually he had a huge scowl on his face. He said "Change of plans. Team Gai is in trouble."

Naruto also adopted a serious look on his face and said "What happened?"

Sarutobi said "Team Gai was on a mission to JuuHachi Town. We got a mission request from the mayor to help the town combat a gang problem, but they were ambushed by the gang there, and Gai was injured. They need backup and we can't spare any Chuunin or Jounin. Our medics won't get Gai back here fast enough to treat the poison. With Naruto's abilities, you guys are the only ones fast enough to get there and get Gai back. After you bring him back, you must go back to JuuHachi Town and help Gai's Genin complete their mission. Do you understand?"

At their nods, Sarutobi said "Good. That poison can kill in 24 hours so I need you to leave as soon as possible."

Kurenai barked out "Team, we don't have time to pack. You'll just have to make do with what you have on you right now. Shino, you're with me. Hinata, Naruto, I need you two to go ahead. Since Hinata has some medical training, she can restrain Gai so that the poison won't move while Naruto flies him back to the village."

Naruto and Hinata nodded and both moved towards the window. Naruto was about to go, but moved out of the way to let Hinata go first. Hinata just glared at him and went first, even though she secretly thought it was a nice gesture.

Naruto sighed at Hinata's glare and thought _'JuuHachi Town is far away. We're gonna have to talk at some point.' _

With that in mind, Naruto flew out of the window, making a beeline for JuuHachi Town.

(Yesterday-Tenten's Perspective)

After getting their mission handed to them from the Hokage, Tenten and the rest of her team went off on the road to handle it. As they were going, Gai and Lee were talking about training regiments with Neji putting his own comments in here or there. The only one not talking was Tenten, which was unusual since she was always so gung-ho.

As soon as they went off, Neji realized that something was up with Tenten. She would usually try to get conversation started so that the group could bond closer, but this time she was silent. At first, Neji thought that it wasn't anything wrong, maybe she just had something on her mind. But 30 minutes on the road to Juuhachi Town, and Tenten still hadn't said a thing. He knew something was up.

As soon as they took a little break when they were halfway to the city, Tenten was pulled aside by Neji. Neji said "Tenten, what's the matter? You've been distracted all day."

Tenten blew off Neji's comment by scoffing. She said "What do you mean 'distracted?' I'm perfectly fine."

Neji gave her a look that said 'Do you think I'm that dumb?'. Neji said "Tenten, you've been really distracted by something. Not just for today, but for the last two weeks. Something's up, and on the road isn't exactly the best place to be thinking about boy troubles."

Tenten's eyes widened and she had a small blush for a split second before she regained her composure, but she knew she was screwed. The fact that she even acknowledged what Neji said was enough for him to realize that he hit the nail on the head. Neji narrowed his eyes a little bit and said "So it is a guy. Tenten, I'm not gonna pry into your private life if you don't want me to, but you need to realize that you're a Kunoichi. We are out of the village and on the road, one of the most popular roads for bandit raids. This is not the time for you to be fantasizing about your new boyfriend. We're all in danger, and you're in danger more than the rest of the team because you're a woman. Get your head together."

Tenten sighed and said "I'm sorry Neji. It's just that, well…the guy is with another woman. I really really like him, but I don't know if we'll ever get together."

Neji lessened his glare and said "Don't worry Tenten, just persevere. Sooner or later, things will turn out your way. …And if that don't work, try reading something to get your mind off of the guy. I'd suggest the marital section of the Konoha Book of Law."

Tenten gave Neji a puzzled look and said "What do you mean?"

Neji gave Tenten a smirk that said 'I know something you don't know.' He said "If you take my advice, you'll find out."

Neji then started walking away, but then turned around and said "Oh yeah, and another thing. Just because something is considered socially deviant, doesn't mean it's illegal."

Tenten looked at Neji and thought _'What the hell was all of that supposed to mean?'_

Tenten just shrugged and walked back to where Gai and Lee were. After a few more minutes of rest, Tenten and the rest of her Team took off towards Juuhachi Town. As they arrived, they made their way to City Hall to see the Mayor of the town about his gang problem. As they arrived, they were greeted by the Mayor, a portly and balding man. He said "Hello honored Shinobi. I appreciate the fact that you've traveled all the way from Konohagakure to help us with our problem. The gang problem here is getting way out of hand."

Gai said "Well, tell us about it."

The Mayor said "The gang is called the Privaron. They were usually a small time gang. A little vandalism and graffiti here and there, just minor misdemeanors. The gang was as dangerous as a group of 12 year olds. But over the past few months, they've started graduating to bigger crimes. They started committing grand larceny and assault, and eventually, murder. Soon, all of the other gangs in the city disbanded, ran away, or were killed by the Privaron. When the Privaron became the last gang in the city, things got even worse. It became impossible to tie them to a crime. But after a few months of hard work, we were able to have their leader, Rodorigo Borruja, brought up on murder charges. There's a warrant out for his arrest, but he's surrounded himself with members of the Privaron and went off the grid. We can't find him now, but we were hoping you could."

Neji coughed a little to get everyone to pay attention to him. He said "I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but how can you be sure that putting their leader in jail will get them to disband?"

The Mayor said "The Privaron are like a beehive. Without the queen, they're useless. They'll fall into disarray, and then we can take them from there."

Tenten said "But how can we tell members of the Privaron from just regular people on the street? I know you said they wore red and black, but so do a lot of people."

The Mayor said "From what we could gather from our moles in the Privaron, the final test to becoming a member is to get a tattoo. The tattoo is of a man with red devil horns and a devil's tail, a white halo and angel wings, a red shirt, and black pants. Also, the tattoo must go on their arms."

Tenten said "But if you know that, then can't you just use that to arrest anyone fitting all of that description?"

The mayor got a dejected look on his face and said "We've tried, but it didn't work. We can't find anyone with the tattoo anymore. Even people our moles knew were members have been coming up clean for the tattoo."

Neji pondered outloud "How can a tattoo like that just disappear? They couldn't have just gotten it removed."

Gai said "Don't you worry at all. We will take care of this gang problem for you. And if we can't, I'll run from Konoha to Sunagakure on my hands."

Lee yelled "Yosh! And if that doesn't work, I'll hop to Kirigakure on one foot with the other tied to my arm."

Gai yelled "And if you fail, I'll climb the Hokage Monument using just my tongue!"

Lee yelled out "And if you fail, I'll crawl to Iwagakure on my hands and knees!"

Gai yelled "Oh Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!"

Both of the spandex wearing Shinobi threw themselves at each other and gave each other bone-crushing hugs. As they did, a picture of a sunset on the horizon over the ocean appeared behind him. The mayor covered his eyes and screamed "Oh my god! Oh my god, I'm blind!"

Tenten and Neji both put on sunglasses as soon as Lee and Gai started yelling. After the Genjutsu dissipated, Team Gai left out of City Hall. The mayor told them that the Privaron were all around the city, but they were based in a part of the town called the Shanjoku District. The Privaron also mostly wore red tops with black bottoms so that the members of the gang could recognize their supporters.

As the Shinobi reached the Shanjoku District, they were shocked at how quickly the buildings changed. Around City Hall, all of the buildings all looked like they were built yesterday. Yet, a 10 minute walk away, the buildings looked like they were about to break down. Windows were broken, gardens were unattended to, and in some places, entire walls of buildings were destroyed. There was also a big increase in the amount of homeless people there. There were used condoms on the street and empty syringes everywhere also.

Even though the sight of all of this was heartbreaking, Team Ten knew that they would have to suck it up and finish their mission. Maybe then, some life could be returned to this part of the city.

As they were patrolling, they started seeing people that fit into the description that the mayor gave them about the Privaron. There were many groups of people all standing around wearing red tops and black bottoms. Team Ten went behind a building and started to spy on the things that some of them were doing. As they were looking, they saw the members of the Privaron doing a bunch of things. Some of them were selling drugs to people on the street. Some of them were even breaking into shops and destroying stuff until the owner paid them money.

Gai decided that he had seen enough. It was time to break one of them. Gai turned to Neji and said "Zoom in with your Byakugan. See if you can see their tattoos."

Neji did as Gai instructed and zoomed in. He said "Because of what they've been saying, we know for a fact that they're members of the Privaron. But for some reason, they don't have the tattoo."

Tenten said "Maybe they're using makeup to cover it?"

Gai said "We'll find out as soon as we get one of them."

As the group of Privaron that were walking down the street decided to go their separate ways, Team Ten went into the shadows to stalk one guy who was on his way home. As he was going home, he took a shortcut through the alleys. As he was walking, Gai grabbed him and threw him into a dead end. Gai started to leak killer intent and give the guy a hard glare to intimidate the guy. The age old tactic was working like a charm.

Gai said "I have some questions to ask you. First off, where is Rodorigo?"

The member of the Privaron scowled at Gai and said "I'm not saying anything!"

Gai turned to the dumpster in the alley. One second, Gai was facing the dumpster. The next second, a huge bang resonates from the dumpster as Gai's leg was buried knee deep in it. The suddenness of the kick and the power behind it made the Privaron member piss his pants.

Gai turned back to the guy and said "I will only ask one more time. Where is Rodorigo Borruja?"

The Privaron member eventually cracked under the killing intent. He said "Rodorigo is-"

The man couldn't say anything else as a senbon hit him right between the eyes, burrowing into his brain and killing him. Gai looked at the senbon and realized that there was a small explosive tag on it. Gai yelled "Move!" and the rest of his team jumped halfway up the buildings that made up the clearing. As the explosive tag blew, small metallic pieces of shrapnel went flying everywhere along with the Privaron member's brain matter and blood.

Gai turned to where the senbon originated from and saw someone in a black cloak running away on the rooftops. Gai narrowed his eyes and said "Tenten, Lee, follow him. Neji, you're with me."

Neji and Gai both went back to the dead member of the Privaron. Gai tore the sleeves of his shirt off and saw the tattoo. The tattoo was just like the Mayor said. Gai said "Isn't that strange? Somehow, he was doing something that kept the tattoo from being shown. When he dies, the tattoo suddenly appears. Something's just not right."

Neji thought the exact same thing as guy. What could possibly keep the tattoo from being shown? Even though it was weird to think of, there could've been a chance that the Privaron member knew Ninjutsu. That would explain why the tattoo wasn't showing until he died. But if it was Genjutsu, it would've had to invade their body, which they would've sensed. If it was the Henge, there would've been a puff of smoke as he died and there was none. What could it be?

Before they could figure it out, Tenten and Lee showed up. Gai said "Did you get him?"

Tenten bowed her head and said "Sorry, Gai-sensei. He threw off his cloak and disappeared in the crowd. He was gone before we could find him."

Gai said "Don't worry, my youthful team. We can try to get information out of another member of the Privaron."

Gai took the lead as the rest of his team followed him. 10 minutes later, Gai realized that while they were dealing with one member of the Privaron, the rest ran like hell. There was not a single person matching the description of the Privaron anywhere. Neji said "That guy in the cloak must have spread the word that we were looking for them."

Lee said "But if that unyouthful fellow with the cloak is working with the Privaron, why did he kill that other guy?"

Neji said "We cracked the guy we captured. He was about to tell us where Rodorigo was, so the other guy had to intervene."

Gai said "Let's try this tomorrow. Maybe then, we'll have better luck. For now, let's go back to the Mayor and ask him where we'll stay for the mission."

Gai and his team went to the Mayor, who told them that they would be staying at the KuroiGetsu, one of the best hotels in the city. After checking in with the lady at the front desk, the team went to their rooms at the top floor of the hotel. They were situated right at the southern end of the hotel. As they got out of the elevator, they barely paid attention to the door that had the 'Employees Only' sign on it. On the right side, Tenten and Lee both had their own rooms. Opposite their rooms were Neji and Gai. As they arrived, each ninja took their own separate rooms and tried to unwind from the day.

While she was lying in her bed, Tenten just couldn't get sleep to come to her. She tossed and turned, until she just huffed and got out of bed. Instead of trying to fight it, Tenten decided to just look over the city until she fell asleep. While Tenten was looking at the sky, she started thinking about everything that had happened to her lately. 2 months ago, if you told her that she would be in the predicament she was, she wouldn't have believed you. But now, she was good friends with someone that knew how to fly, she found someone that had an interest in many of the same things that she does, and he wanted to help her accomplish her life's dream. Even weirder, she wanted to be with him, even though he was with another girl.

Usually, she would've never even entertained the thought of stealing another girl's boyfriend. Hell, if this was two months ago, she would've beaten the hell out of any woman that did it. But now that she was the one in this position, she was starting to see things differently.

Everyone deserved the chance to be with the person they loved. While she knew that her feelings for Naruto weren't love yet, they could easily grow to become love. For all she knew, Naruto could be the one for her. For all she knew, she could be the one for Naruto. Who's to say that when they get closer, he won't feel more for her than he does for Hinata?

She said that she would wait until they broke up, but for all Tenten knew, that might never happen. She said she wouldn't try and steal Naruto because she didn't want to compete with Hinata for him. Tenten kept asking herself: Was she gonna let a chance at love go by because she was scared to fight another woman for him? Tenten sighed as she knew that sooner or later she would have to make a tough decision.

Sadly for Tenten, that decision would have to wait.

While Tenten was staring out at the city, something moving caught her attention. Looking down, she saw two people walk past the hotel towards the back. Tenten thought _'It's probably just the cleaning crew or something.'_

Tenten kept looking around the city, hoping that sleep would come to her soon. While she was looking, she heard some shuffling outside the door of her room. At first, it wouldn't have bothered her, but whatever was making the noise outside was starting to get on her nerves. Tenten walked to the door and was about to get whoever was doing it to stop, but when she reached the door, she heard something. It was a familiar sound to her, but was difficult for her to pinpoint. It sounded like…

'_Sizzling?'_

Tenten's eyes widened in surprise and she jumped back. As soon as she did, the door blew open and people rushed in. Tenten quickly flipped over her bed and turned the mattress on its' side to be used as cover. Luckily for Tenten, she put all of her sealing scrolls and pouches on her bed also, so when she flipped it over, it all landed near her.

Tenten quickly strapped on her kunai pouch and unsealed her sword. Just as Tenten unsealed her sword, one of the men reached over the top of the bed and grabbed her hair, causing her to yelp in pain. Tenten quickly pulled out a kunai and stabbed the man in the arm, muttering "Bastard." The guy screamed in pain and pulled his hand back. Tenten jumped over the bed and dropkicked the guy into his friends. Tenten hopped to her feet and looked at the amount of people in the room. There were 8 people. All of them wore red tops and black bottoms, signifying them as members of the Privaron. _'How the hell did they find out where we were staying?'_

Tenten couldn't think of an answer to this question because she had to fight for her life. Tenten saw one of the members trying to stab her in the gut, so Tenten jumped to the left at the last second, then cut the guy on his side, sending him to the ground. Tenten leaned back as a dagger strike passed over her head. Tenten moved into a backflip kick to kick the guy in the chin. Tenten then used her free hand to grab a dagger and tackled the guy to the ground. Tenten then stabbed the guy in the stomach, putting him down.

Tenten saw one of the gang members rushing her, so she quickly rolled to her feet and stood in a defensive stance. The guy rushing her stopped, then gave his friends a look. At once, three of the Privaron rushed her. Tenten grimaced and thought _'Damnit! They're learning.'_

Tenten saw two of them slashing high while another slashed low. Tenten cursed and jumped to the side, then kicked the member nearest her. Tenten jumped back, but saw that that members kept following her. _'They're making it so I can't use my sword. I gotta switch weapons.'_

Seeing as the Privaron were on her whenever she made a move, Tenten couldn't go to where her sealing scrolls were. Tenten decided to just drop her sword and pull out two kunai. Tenten narrowed her eyes and bent down into a defensive stance. The three members of the Privaron rushed her. Tenten blocked two of the kunai strikes, while she dodged the third. Tenten quickly kicked the guy in the stomach, pushed the other member's daggers away, then slit the guy's throat. Tenten didn't break down because she figured out how to deal with death a long time ago. Kill now, mourn later.

Tenten blocked the guys' strikes again, then kneed one guy in the stomach and kicked the other guy in the shin. Tenten stabbed one guy in the throat, then hit the other guy in the temple with the butt of the kunai, knocking him out. Tenten saw the last three guys rushing her, so she waited until they were too close to dodge and threw the kunai, taking out two of the Privaron. The last one saw that he was alone, and pulled out his dagger and rushed her. Tenten quickly used the guys momentum to flip him over her and crash head first into the wall, knocking him out. Seeing as her attackers were gone, Tenten quickly strapped on her equipment.

Tenten rushed out of the room only to see that the rest of her team was attacked as well. Looking in their rooms, she saw that Neji was easily taking out his people and finishing up. Lee, recently finished with his ambushers, came out and said "Tenten! Thank goodness you are okay!"

Tenten said "Yeah, no problem, Lee. But now, we gotta go in there and-"

Whatever Tenten said next was lost to Lee as the sound of the elevator pinging reached their ears. Looking down the hall, they saw a large group of the Privaron turn the corner making a beeline for them. Neji came out of his room and saw the situation. He said "We don't have the room to take them out here. We have to move, now!"

Lee said "But Neji-san, where will we go?"

Neji looked back into his room to the window and remembered that they were on the top floor of the hotel. He said "The roof, go!"

All three of the Genin made a break for their rooms, with Lee quickly alerting Gai as to where they were going. Tenten and Neji quickly jumped out of the windows and stuck to the side of the building with chakra. They then took off running to the top. Lee didn't have chakra, but rock climbing had been an enjoyable pastime of his since he was a kid. When he became a ninja, he was able to adapt his rock climbing skills into climbing building sides. Lee hopped out of the window and quickly scaled the side of the building to meet his teammates up there.

As he reached up there, he and his team looked at the sole door to the roof. They all took defensive stances. Less than a minute later, they heard a small jangling, then the door was busted open and the members of the Privaron started pouring out. Lee quickly rushed the members of the Privaron with Neji following him. Tenten quickly started pulling out kunai to cover her teammates' asses. Together, Lee and Neji were tearing through the Privaron like a hurricane, flinging bodies, blood, and weapons all around the roof, and sometimes off of it. Every kunai Tenten threw increased her kill count by one. The members of the Privaron were getting thrown around like ragdolls, showing that they were clearly outclassed.

As more members of the Privaron arrived, Tenten couldn't keep them back with just kunai. She quickly pulled out a staff and joined her teammates in the massacre. To the untrained eye, it looked like Tenten was wildly swinging her bo staff around. To the trained eye, it was the movement of an obvious master, with every strike hitting a Privaron member in a spot that could incapacitate them.

As this was going on, one of the members tried to strike Tenten from behind, only for Tenten to twist around and crack him in his left temple. Tenten quickly had to duck down to dodge a kick, then she jumped back so a punch would only hit air. Before she could do anything, Tenten was grabbed around the stomach by a gang member. Tenten tried to break through his grip, but couldn't. She saw one of them approaching her with a kunai, so she quickly kicked him. The member dodged that kick, and the follow up ones that she tried to hit him with. The guy got close and tried to stab her with the kunai, only for his arm to go limp as Neji hit him with a Juuken strike there. Neji quickly kicked the guy holding Tenten and helped her to her feet.

Tenten said "Neji, something's up with these guys. They're stronger than before."

Neji said "I know. Somehow, they're using chakra to increase their abilities. Someone must have instructed them how to, but the only person that could do that was a Shinobi."

Tenten said "They must have one in their group."

Neji said "I suspected that too. Be careful Tenten."

Tenten nodded and said "I will be. I was just caught off-guard before."

Neji saw one member of the Privaron yell "Charge!"

The members of the Privaron surrounding them charged them simultaneously. Tenten quickly jumped away, but Neji waited for them to get closer. He yelled out "Hakkeshou Kaiten!"

Neji twisted in a circle, flinging all of the members of the Privaron away. Before he could do more, he heard a voice yell "Fire Style: Grand Fireball Jutsu!"

All of a sudden, they saw smoke coming from underneath him. Neji thought _'Someone must've set fire to our hotel rooms.'_

From the smoke jumped Gai. Gai had a few tears in his spandex suit and his hair was slightly disheveled. He had dirt smudges all over his clothes and his mouth was bleeding slightly. Also from the smoke jumped someone else. This guy had blood red hair in a long ponytail. He was wearing a black flak jacket like Jounnin wear, but without the Uzumaki spiral on the back. His flak jacket was open with a red shirt underneath. He was wearing black Shinobi pants and black sandals. In his hands was a huge broadsword as he swung it at Gai. His red eyes were beaming with hatred as he tried to bisect Gai, but kept failing.

Gai quickly dodged one strike, and used the weights in his leg warmers to block the next. Gai used them to push the strike away, then kicked the guy in the chest. Gai said "This fight has gone on long enough, Kazuya. You don't have the skill or energy to beat me. Give up."

Kazuya snarled and said "And go back to that dump of a village and be caged like an animal? No thanks."

Gai glared at Kazuya and said "You deserved to be jailed. You tried to poison a 4 year old kid!"

Kazuya yelled "And I would've succeeded if you and that damn one-eyed freak didn't get in my way! I'm not going back to jail."

Gai said "If you won't accept prison, then your only other option is death." Gai dashed toward Kazuya, intent on dealing the final blow. Seeing this, Kazuya smirked. Gai couldn't stop himself in enough time, and muttered "Shit" as he was engulfed in a dark purple plume of smoke.

What Gai forgot was that Kazuya was an accomplished poison expert. His invention of a poison dart launcher revolutionized how the Konoha Hunter Nin hunted ninja. While he was in prison, he thought of a new idea. Pellets that when crushed, let loose a plume of poisonous gas to engulf an enemy. Kazuya purposely let a few drop when he was kicked back by Gai, and now Gai had just stepped on one.

When the poison smoke bomb was activated, Lee looked over to see his idol incased in smoke. Thinking the worst, Lee yelled "Gai-sensei!"

Lee quickly dashed over to Gai and grabbed him out of the smoke, being careful not to breath any in himself. After he grabbed him, Lee checked Gai's pulse to see that he was breathing, just unconscious.

Kazuya smirked and said "You better get your precious Gai-sensei out of here and back to Konoha. That poison has a kill clock of 24 hours."

Lee yelled "You unyouthful fiend! For what you did to Gai-sensei, I will defeat you right now!"

Kazuya smirked and said "Kid, you're 10 years too young and 20 years too inexperienced to defeat me."

Lee smirked and said "Keep thinking that."

Lee reached down and took off his weights, disappearing to the regular eye. Kazuya could barely block Lee's next few strikes as Lee attacked Kazuya like a madman. After realizing his mistake, Kazuya started taking Lee seriously. Lee's speed was easily matched by Kazuya, and in a few minutes, Lee was overtaken.

Neji and Tenten saw what was happening and went over to help, but before they could, Kazuya saw Neji and realized he was a Hyuuga. Kazuya knew that with all three of them, he wouldn't stand a chance against them, so he did the next best thing. Kazuya did a few handseals and yelled out "Fire Style: Grand Fireball Jutsu!"

He launched the jutsu to a part of the roof, causing it to catch fire. Kazuya smirked and said "Goodbye, Leaf nin."

Kazuya then jumped off of the building and disappeared. Neji would've tried to follow him, but they were preoccupied. The fire that Kazuya started was traveling toward a gas tank on top of the building. Seeing it, Neji yelled at his team "Move!"

Lee put on his weights and helped Neji grab Gai as Gai still had his weights on. Tenten ran behind them as they jumped off of the building seconds before it detonated. Any live member of the Privaron that was up there was dead as the fire engulfed the entire roof and the top three floors of the KuroiGetsu hotel. The fire was also traveling down, engulfing the entire hotel in flames. Wasting no time, Neji instructed Tenten and Lee to keep moving and don't look back. As they were running, they were also looking for somewhere to lay low until they could plan their next step. Eventually, they found an abandoned warehouse that was across the city from the KuroiGetsu hotel and decided to take shelter there. After clearing a space, Neji and Lee laid Gai down and started checking him over. Neji checked Gai with his Byakugan to see how the poison was working. He saw that the poison was slow-moving. It started in his lungs and was slowly spreading. Soon, it would reach Gai's bloodstream, and from there, it would get to his heart and be pumped throughout his entire body.

'_We need to get him help soon. Without it, he'll die.'_

Neji said "Lee, how long did the poison guy say that Gai had?"

Lee said "24 hours."

Neji muttered "Shit. We need to get back to the village right now."

Tenten said "But how will we? We can't afford to take Gai back at our regular pace. It might make the poison move faster. Walking there will take more than a day!"

Neji started pacing around the warehouse, thinking of a way out of this situation. Neji knew the pressure was on him. Even though it wasn't official, everyone in the group knew that if a situation arose where Gai couldn't lead them, Neji would step up. When Gai started to realize this, he would start asking for Neji's input on certain situations and he would ask Neji to take point on some missions. On those, Neji was happy to oblige because he knew that Gai would be there to save their asses if he messed up. But now, Gai was knocked out and Neji was the one they were looking too for guidance. All those times that Gai taught Neji leadership qualities would now be put to the test, and Neji could admit to himself that he was scared. But they were looking to him, and he didn't want to let them down.

10 minutes after he started pacing, an idea came to Neji. Neji turned to Tenten and said "Tenten? How fast can Naruto fly?"

Tenten shrugged and said "I don't know. Last time we checked, he could fly twice as fast as he ran. He might've gotten faster though."

Neji said "Okay, I've got a plan. We need to get Team 8 here now. Hinata has some medical training and she can fly too. If she can move as fast as Naruto, they can get here in half the time it took us. She restrains Gai so the poison won't accelerate and Naruto flies him back to the village."

Lee said "That's a good idea Neji, but you left out the part about how we would get the message to the village to request Team 8. We don't know how to summon a messenger hawk, so we can't send it that way."

A lightbulb went off in Tenten's head as she said "Why not use a pigeon in the town pigeon coop? They're not as fast as hawks, but they can deliver the message in a few hours."

Neji nodded and said "Good thinking, Tenten. Write the message and send it, quick."

Tenten pulled an empty scroll out of her pouch and started writing the message to the Hokage. When she was finished, she saw that it was nearing dawn, so she had to move quickly. Tenten stuck to the shadows as she moved across the village to the pigeon coop. She attached a message to a pigeon and instructed it to go to Konoha. As she sent it off, Tenten started going back to the warehouse, but a poster caught her eye.

The poster had a picture of her, Neji, Lee, and Gai. The text under the picture said _These four are wanted for questioning relating to the destruction of the KuroiGetsu hotel. If you see them, immediately report to the police. They are extremely dangerous. _

Tenten groaned and thought _'Things just went from bad to worse.'_

(End)


	10. Trip to JuuHachi Town

I feel like I didn't establish it enough in the last chapter, but its 10:00 in the morning when Hinata and Naruto leave. Gai had already been infected for 8 hours. Also, according to the most recent chapter of Naruto, the Kyuubi no Yoko's true name is Kurama, so from now on, that's what I will call him. And I left a bit of a cliffhanger at the end of this chapter, please don't kill me.

* * *

After getting their marching orders from the Hokage, Naruto and Hinata both took off towards JuuHachi Town. While they were flying, Naruto was still getting the cold shoulder from Hinata.

"So Hina-chan, what do you think is the poison that's affecting Gai?

"…"

"How are you gonna strap him to the stretcher? If something like this happens again, it might be good to know."

"…"

It went on like this for 10 minutes, until finally Naruto snapped. He yelled "Okay, that's it!"

Naruto flew right in Hinata's way, forcing her to stop. He said "I've been patient and putting up with you giving me the cold shoulder for two weeks, but now I'm getting tired of it. Hina-chan, tell me, what the hell did I do that was so bad to you?"

Hinata just stood there and glared at Naruto, until she decided to let loose. She yelled, "You wanna know what you did? You defended that slut Tenten!"

Naruto said back "So what? She's a friend of mine, and without knowing her for even a day, you called her a slut and got into a fight with her!"

Hinata retorted "What makes her so damn special that you would take her side over me? You barely know her for a month and you're already defending her!"

Naruto said, "Have you forgotten how we even became friends, Hinata? I knew you for 2 days, and barely said 5 words to you in those days. I didn't know a damn thing about you, and I saved you when a CLOUD JOUNIN tried to abduct you!"

Hinata replied, "What does that have to do with his?"

Naruto said "I'm not gonna just stand back and let someone talk about my friends like you did to her. Whether it was Tenten, or anyone else, I'm not gonna just let someone talk about them."

Hinata said, "You still didn't answer me. What is so special about her that you would take her side over me?"

Naruto said, "I don't want to take anyone's side, but you two keep forcing me to. I brought her to the training ground that day because you both mean a lot to me and I wanted you two to be friends. But you both decided to just turn it into one big catfight, and now you're forcing me in the middle. I just want peace!"

Hinata muttered "Well, you're not gonna get it anytime soon."

Naruto said, "Then tell me why? Why can't you two just talk this out like mature adults?"

Hinata blurted out "Because she's trying to steal you from me!"

Naruto was visibly shocked from Hinata's statement. From the way Hinata reacted, she was shocked too. It seemed that Tenten's true goal was something that Hinata didn't want Naruto t know. She didn't mean to say that, but now it was out there. He would've guessed a lot of things, but Tenten trying to steal him from Hinata? That never crossed his mind. "What are you talking about?"

Hinata said, "After we had our first argument, I went to Tenten and told her to stay away from you. She said that she wouldn't and that the second there's something wrong in our relationship, she'd take you from me."

Naruto said "And you think giving me the cold shoulder for two weeks would make it seem like there's nothing wrong with our relationship? (Sigh) Hinata, you're my girlfriend. You're the woman I love, and nothing will change that. But ignoring me and giving me the cold shoulder for two weeks really doesn't make me think that you want our relationship to continue."

Hinata sighed and said, "I know. I don't know what came over me. I...I was just so pissed that I had just gotten together with the love of my life, and some slut just tried to steal him from me. I was so mad, and I took it out on you for no reason. I'm really sorry, Naruto-kun."

Naruto smiled and hugged his girlfriend. "Water under the bridge, Hinata-chan. But this does raise a question."

Hinata looked up to Naruto and said, "What question?"

Naruto said "What the hell are we gonna do about Tenten? I mean, she might be trying to steal me from you, but she's also my friend. She helped me fine-tune my Kenjutsu. I promised her that I would help her achieve her dream no matter what. You know how I feel about going back on my promises."

Hinata turned her head away from Naruto's gaze and said "Naruto-kun, I don't want you to have to end your friendship with her for that, but I don't feel comfortable with you hanging around her. What if she tries to make a move on you?"

Naruto turned Hinata's chin so that she was looking at him in the eye. He said, "She can make all the moves she wants. No one can replace you in my heart. What we have is special, something that no one can take from us. Hinata, I will always love you, and no force in existence will ever change that."

Naruto's words started to move something in Hinata. Her cheeks started turning pink from blushing as her eyes started to tear up. As her voice started breaking, she said "Naruto, that's the most romantic thing I've ever heard." Hinata couldn't hold the tears back anymore as she held her head to Naruto's chest and started to cry. In response, Naruto just hugged Hinata tighter and started to cry silent tears of joy that he got his love back in his life. For what seemed like hours, the lovers just floated in midair, basking in the loving embrace of each other.

As their tears started to lessen, Hinata started wiping her eyes and said "Thanks, Naruto-kun. I needed that."

Naruto smiled and said "Good. Now let's go get Gai before he dies on us."

With that, both Hinata and Naruto took off towards JuuHachi Town as fast as they could.

* * *

(4 hours later- 2: 00 P.M, JuuHachi Town)

Eventually, they reached the town and touched down on the top of a skyscraper. From there, he and Hinata jumped to the ground and started walking around the village. As they were walking around, Hinata said "We need to find Team Gai as soon as we can. Their original mission report said that the Mayor of the village himself hired them. Maybe he can tell us where they are."

With that in mind, both of them started to move towards City Hall. While they were going, they saw that there was a huge crowd gathering in front City Hall. In front of City Hall was a stand that the Mayor was at, getting ready to give a speech. Naruto turned to the nearest civilian and said, "What is the Mayor making a speech about?"

The civilian said, "You don't know? Some horrible Leaf Nin accepted a mission to come here and help us deal with the Privaron. But just last night they burned down a hotel. 30 people died."

Naruto didn't know what the hell the Privaron were, and he didn't care. He was much more concerned with the fact that someone burned down a hotel and blamed it on his friends. He said, "You're lying. There's no way that one of the Leaf nin did that."

Another civilian next to them turned to Naruto and said, "It's true. I live right next to where the KuroiGetsu used to stand. When I saw a red glow last night, I walked out to see what was happening. I saw them jump from the roof and run down an alley while the KuroiGetsu burned to the ground."

Naruto shook his head and said, "I don't believe you. I refuse to believe that they did that."

The first person Naruto asked said "What happened to your common sense, son?"

Naruto retorted with "Whatever happened to 'innocent until proven guilty?'"

Before the guy could say more, the Mayor started his speech.

"Good Morning, people of JuuHachi Town. My name is Takeshi Yamamoto, and I was wrong. You know as well as I do that the Privaron have been terrorizing our town for years. Well, I had enough of it. I wanted them out, and I wanted it done now. So in order to do that, I concocted a plan to drive them into the ground. The survival of that plan depended on the Leaf Nin helping me. What I didn't expect was for the KuroiGetsu Hotel to burn down with them staying in it. So now, I come to you to rectify my mistake.

"As of right now, we know that there was no physical problem that caused the fire of the KuroiGetsu Hotel. It was not because of faulty wiring, or a candle being knocked over. We are certain that a Fire element Ninjutsu started that fire. While we have no physical evidence that suggests that it was the Leaf Ninja that started this fire, they are the prime suspects. So, as Mayor of JuuHachi Town, I officially put out a warrant for the arrest of Tenten, Rock Lee, Neji Hyuuga, and Maito Gai. Also, until further notice, it will be the policy of this city, to treat any Leaf Nin, as potential accomplices to these four. Until further notice, Leaf Nin are no longer legally allowed to be in JuuHachi Town."

Naruto muttered "Oh shit. This isn't good."

Hinata leaned over to Naruto and whispered "Maybe it's best if we leave before people realize that-"

Before Hinata could finish her statement, someone yelled "THERE THEY ARE OVER THERE! LEAF NIN!"

Hinata muttered, "Damn."

As soon as that person yelled, people trying to hold them down swarmed Hinata and Naruto. Almost as if they were one, Hinata and Naruto sent out a wave of ki that knocked the people around them on their ass. Then, they jumped to their right, hopped to the side of a building, and ran like hell. After they thought that they were a suitable distance away, they stopped running and hopped into an alley. As they took refuge in that alley, Hinata and Naruto agreed to take off their headbands and hide them in their shirts. As soon as they did that, they heard a voice behind them say, "Damn, I wish you guys would teach me how to do that stuff."

Turning around, they saw Neji. Hinata exclaimed "Neji!" and jumped in his arms to hug her brother figure. Naruto said, "It's good to see you, Neji. I thought you guys were hurt in that fire."

Neji said, "We're alright, but Gai is a different story. I trust you guys know the situation?"

At their nods, Neji said, "Well, come on. I'll show you guys where we are."

With that, Neji took Naruto and Hinata to the warehouse he and the rest of their team were hiding in. On the way though, he looked to Naruto and said "Naruto, what the hell did you do to your hair? It looks like you fell asleep in ketchup."

"Fuck you, Neji."

When they arrived at the warehouse, they saw that Tenten and Lee were sitting next to Gai, tending to him. When Naruto and Hinata arrived, Naruto saw Hinata visibly tense. Naruto grabbed Hinata's hand in his to calm her down as they walked over to Gai.

As they were walking over to Gai's body, Tenten and Lee saw them. Tenten was about to hug Naruto until she saw that he was holding hands with Hinata. While Tenten was looking at them, stunned that they were back together, Lee had jumped up and said "Hinata-chan! Naruto-kun! It is so great to see you two!"

Naruto chuckled a little and said, "It's good to see you too, Lee. Tenten-chan, how's Gai doing?"

It seemed that Tenten didn't hear Naruto since she was still staring at empty space. After Naruto said her name again, she quickly shook her head and said "I'm sorry Naruto-kun, what did you say?"

Naruto said, "How's Gai doing?"

Tenten said "Oh. He's not doing so well. His breathing is getting more and more shallow. HIs pulse is getting weaker too. I don't know how long he has left."

Naruto said "Don't worry Tenten-chan, he'll be fine. I promise."

Tenten nodded and said "Thanks, Naruto-kun."

Naruto said "No problem. Hinata-chan, when do you think we'll be able to move him?"

Hinata said, "I don't know exactly. I'll have to do a few tests."

Naruto said "Okay, Hinata-chan. Tenten-chan, can I talk to you outside for a second?"

Tenten said "Sure."

Naruto led Tenten outside and hid in the shadows of the building so that someone who came around wouldn't see them. He said "Ten-chan, there's something that I need you to do for me?"

Tenten said "Anything Naruto-kun."

Naruto said, "I need you to try and bury the hatchet with Hinata-chan."

Tenten's eyes widened in surprise. As her surprise gave way to anger, her eyes narrowed and her fists clenched. She said, "Why the hell should I-"

Naruto said, "Tenten, I know that you two got into a fight. I know that she's not exactly your favorite person in the world."

Tenten muttered 'No shit', but if Naruto heard it, he didn't say anything about it. He said "But she's my girlfriend and I love her. She means a lot to me and so do you. I'd really appreciate it if you just tried to get along with her."

Tenten said "Hell no. Not after what she did. She's the one who should apologize."

Naruto sighed. _'How come all the women in my life have to be so damn stubborn?'_

In the back of his mind, he heard his mother say,_ "Hey, I resent that."_

Naruto retorted _'Don't care.' _He said "Tenten, don't you think that Hinata feels the exact same way?"

Tenten started to back down a bit at that statement. Seeing that she was starting to become less standoffish, Naruto continued. "You both did things that you shouldn't have done and should apologize for. All I'm asking is that you be the bigger woman and apologize first."

Tenten shook her head. "I don't know if I can just forgive her for what she did."

Naruto said, "Hey, you never know who your best friend could wind up being. When Neji first met me, he thought that I was just some street urchin and I wasn't worthy of being Hinata-chan's friend. As a matter of fact, that was the first thing he said to me. I punched him in the jaw, and we got into a fight. We were always at each other's throats and calling each other names afterwards. But because of Hinata-chan and how she felt about it, we decided to let the past stay in the past. After we got over that, Neji became my best friend."

Tenten sighed. She thought _'How come Naru-kun has to be right?'_

She said, "Fine, I will. But only because you want me to so bad."

Naruto nodded and hugged Tenten. He said, "Thank you, Ten-chan."

After he let her go (even though she didn't want him to), he and Tenten both walked back into the warehouse to see that Hinata had finished her tests. She was tying Gai onto a plank of wood to make sure that he didn't move while Naruto was flying him home.

After she tied him on, she said, "Naruto-kun, he's ready."

Naruto nodded and picked up the prone Gai. As he held him over his head, Lee said "Hurry, my youthful friend. Gai-sensei has less than 12 hours left."

Hinata walked up to Naruto and kissed him. She said, "It took us four hours of flying to get here. You'll have to slow it down so that you don't aggravate his condition. You'd better get moving."

Naruto nodded and said "I'll be back soon guys, don't worry."

Naruto walked out of the warehouse and took off, rocketing towards Konohagakure.

* * *

(5 hours later- 7:00 P.M-Road to Konohagakure)

As Naruto was flying at breakneck speeds towards Konohagakure, he didn't have much to do. Hinata was with Team Gai in JuuHachi Town and he was flying with a comatose patient. So to pass the time, he was chatting with his mother on the specifics of his demonic form. While he was doing so, he didn't notice that there were two bugs on his shoulder hitching a ride with him. These two bugs were from the bug colony located in Shino's body. Usually, there was always one on Naruto so that Shino would be able to find them if they were separated for any reason. But the second was put on him right before he hopped out of the Hokage's window.

As Naruto was flying, the second bug flew off of his shoulder and down to the ground. Eventually, it made its way onto Shino's outstretched finger. He turned to Kurenai and said "Kurenai-sensei, Naruto-san has just flew overhead. He's taking Gai to Konoha to get the treatment. If things stay this way, Naruto will make it to the village in enough time to save Gai-san."

Kurenai let out a sigh of relief as she was given the good news. She said, "That's good. I was worried for a second there."

Shino seemed to ignore Kurenai's statement, but when she looked closer, she saw that he was still interpreting his bug's language. Shino spoke up, saying, "My bug also said that Naruto and Hinata made up."

Kurenai said "Finally. I thought I was gonna have to lock them in a closet together to get them to make up."

Shino nodded and said, "I agree. It sounds weird, but I kind of missed Hinata and Naruto being all lovey-dovey."

Kurenai muttered, "That makes one of us."

Shino went back to listening to his bug. Its last bit of news troubled Shino. Shino said "Kurenai-sensei, we may have a problem when we get to JuuHachi Town."

Kurenai said "What kind of problem?"

Shino gravely said, "While Hinata and Naruto were there, they were attacked by someone. It could've been this gang that Team Gai was sent to take down, but my bug doesn't think so. The only thing it's telling me is to expect opposition when we reach our destination."

Kurenai nodded and increased her speed. She wished that she could gleam more information from the bug, but they weren't perfect. She had no way of contacting Hinata. She was at JuuHachi Town and her and Shino weren't even close to them yet. If Naruto was flying at his full speed, he was easily miles away from them by now. She had no idea what this 'opposition' was that she should expect. Kurenai decided that she would put it out of her mind until she got time to rest and think it through.

* * *

(3.5 hours later-10: 30 P.M-Konohagakure)

After the doctors took Gai into the emergency room, Naruto sighed. Like Hinata said before, it was a four-hour flight at top speed to JuuHachi Town. But at their top speed, Gai's internal fluids would've been splashing around like the water inside a balloon in a water balloon toss. That would've increased the speed of the poison going through his body. Instead, Naruto flew at half speed. While that was still fast as hell, it took 8 hours to fly back to Konoha. Plus, Naruto misjudged the speed and still accelerated Gai's condition. As it was now, Gai barely had two hours before the poison would reach his heart. Naruto prayed to whatever God was listening that Gai would pull through.

Naruto walked out of the hospital, intent on flying through the night to reach JuuHachi Town, but before he could take off, an ANBU agent tapped him on the shoulder. The ANBU agent said, "Naruto-san, the Hokage would like to see you before you depart."

Naruto nodded and took off for the Hokage's office. When he got there, he saw that the Hokage had cleared his desk of needless paperwork and had a big file there. Sarutobi said, "Naruto-kun, I've been reading through this thing."

Naruto sighed and rolled his eyes. "Old man, is that my medical file again? Didn't I tell you before to just burn that thing? It's only gonna depress you more."

Sarutobi said, "I know, Naruto-kun, I know. But it's just that what young Tenten put in her distress letter bugged me. The poisoning of Gai-san. It reminded me of something that happened to you. I was looking in your medical file to help me remember what it was."

Naruto raised an eyebrow and said, "Did it help?"

Sarutobi nodded and said "Naruto, you remember when you were four and you spent a week in the hospital?"

Naruto said "Yeah. This guy gave me a coupon for a free meal at Robaato-san no Shokudou (AN: Robert's Cafeteria). I ordered the fish and chicken dish and got salmonella from the uncooked chicken."

Sarutobi said, "True. But there's a different side of that story that I didn't tell you."

Naruto said "What?"

The Hokage said, "You didn't actually get salmonella, Naruto-kun. You were poisoned."

Naruto looked at the Hokage with squinted eyes and said "What chu talkin' 'bout, Sarutobi?"

The Hokage said, "You never contracted salmonella. When we interrogated Robaato-san about it, he said that he put something special in the tarter sauce that came with the fish and chicken. He put some special poison in there?"

Naruto looked shocked at the Hokage's statement. "How is that possible, ojii-san? I thought that since I had Grandpa Fuzzypants in my body, it made me immune to poison."

The 'Grandpa Fuzzypants' comment caused the Kyuubi to roar in embarrassment and anger, while Kushina was rolling around Naruto's mind laughing. The Hokage noticed the Grandpa Fuzzypants comment, but if he was surprised, he didn't show it. He said, "That's what I thought. It turns out that it just makes it easier for you to throw off the effects of the poison and fight it. There was enough in that tarter sauce to kill 30 people. If anyone else would've ingested as much of the poison as you did, Naruto-kun, they'd have dropped dead instantly. You're lucky you were just bedridden for a week."

Naruto said, "Did you guys ever find out who did it?"

Sarutobi narrowed his eyes as his anger of that day returned to him. Looking the Hokage in the eye, it reminded Naruto that the Hokage wasn't just some old man. He was one of the most dangerous people on the planet. Whoever was the target of that stare, Naruto almost felt sorry for the poor bastard. Sarutobi said "Kazuya Goraichou. He was one of our village's best poison expert. As a matter of fact, he was the inventor of the poison dart launcher. He was also a Kenjutsu master. The things he could do with his sword could make a Samurai green with envy. But even with all those amazing abilities, he still had one giant flaw. He could never let things go.

"When the Kyuubi attacked, he and his twin brother Kaiza were two of the first people on the battlefield. They were the driving force behind the group that distracted the Kyuubi while your dad got ready to repel him. Kaiza sacrificed himself to save Kazuya, and Kazuya blamed two people ever since for his brother's death. Himself, and you.

"After the attack, he threw himself into training and poison making. He made 5 different potions in four years, each one worse than the last. His last poison was the one he used on you. Afterwards, Gai-san and Kakashi-san hunted him down and imprisoned him.

"A few months ago, the prison he was at had a massive power failure. When the power failed, a total of 30 prisoners escaped. Of those 30, only 20 were captured. The ten left uncaptured were the only ten inmates housed in the supermax wing of the prison. The ten inmates were all former Konoha-nin, all used to be considered great assets to our village. They were on the fast track to becoming Elite Jounin. But each of them tried to do some horrible act to you, and each of them came damn close to succeeding. Kazuya was one of them, and this poison that's affecting Gai sounds a lot like a weaker version of his fifth poison. If it is, he could still have a grudge against you. You need to be really careful out there Naruto."

Naruto said "Thanks for caring, Ojii-san, but you don't have anything to be worried about. I'll be fine."

Sarutobi chuckled and said, "I'll try, but I don't think I will."

Naruto smiled and said, "I know."

The Sandaime said "Okay, enough with the sappy stuff. Get out there and kick some ass. And if you can, bring Kazuya back alive. There's a cash reward for bringing him in dead, but there's twice as much for bringing him in alive."

Naruto nodded and took off out the window. Sarutobi sighed and said "That boy is gonna be the death of me."

* * *

(Minutes later)

Naruto took off out of the Sandaime's window, heading towards JuuHachi Town. As he was going, he decided to take it a bit slower than his usual speed. While he was flying, a thought occurred to him. He mentally said to his mother _'Mom, what is Grandpa Fuzzypants' real name anyway? Kyuubi no Yoko sounds more like a title than a name.'_

Kushina said _"Well sochi, Daddy doesn't like for people to call him by his real name. The title Kyuubi no Yoko inspires fear in other demons, which Daddy needs if he wants to stay as the King of Demons. His true name is Kurama.'_

Naruto replied _'Kurama. ...Now I can see why he would like to be called Kyuubi no Yoko more than Kurama. Kyuubi-sama sounds a lot more intimidating than Kurama-sama.' _

As Naruto was flying, he was looking around the world. Call him crazy, but he could've sworn that he hadn't gone past this part of the forest. As he was looking around to try and find his way, he heard screaming off in the distance. Seeing as he had nothing better to do, Naruto decided to fly off towards the scream. As he got there, what he saw made his blood run cold.

Based on all of the wooden towers surrounding the place and its location in the deep forest, Naruto could guess what it was. It was a bandit camp. If the look didn't tell him, the smell of sex, blood, and sweat was a dead giveaway. Naruto was about to rush down there and destroy the place, but he had a thought. He needed to get to JuuHachi Town as fast as he possibly could. But there could be people in the bandit camp being held hostage or worse. Eventually, the side of him worrying about the people in the camp won out as he started thinking about how to help the people. A few minutes later, he had a plan.

Naruto quickly made 10 clones and had them surround the compound. Their orders were simple. Stop any bandits trying to get out. Naruto's clones quickly ascended to Super Saiyan while Naruto landed on the ground. Naruto closed his eyes and concentrated as he flooded his body with Youki and entered his demonic form. Again, his black hair fell out as red locks grew from his scalp that grew to shoulder length. His nails grew and sharpened to claws. His regular ears receded into his body as fox ears sprouted out of the top of his head. His canine teeth grew sharper and his whiskers grew thicker. Luckily for Naruto, he didn't have to re-experience growing out his tail. His current tail, which looked like a monkey's tail, grew red fur with white fur at the tip. When the new fur grew out enough, the brown fur fell off. Again, the transformation hurt like hell, but Naruto powered through it. When it was over, Naruto realized that the transformation was easier than last time. _'Hopefully, it'll get to the point that it doesn't hurt. I can't keep going through this pain every time I want to transform.'_

_"Naru-chan, the fact that the transformation hurts every time is an indication that you're not ready to fight in that form yet."_

_'Ah, stop worrying mom. I'll be fine.'_

_"Please, Naru-chan, I don't wanna see you get hurt."_

_'Mom, sometimes you gotta run before you can walk.'_

_"Name one situation where that ever applies."_

_'Okaa-san, don't stop me now. I'm on a roll.'_

(Sigh) _"Okay, Naru-chan, but if this blows up in your face, I reserve the right to tell you I told you so."_

Naruto quickly took off his headband and put it in his pocket. If this situation turned out for the worst, it was probably best if no one connected him to his village. Naruto quickly crouched down and hopped to the nearest lookout post. Naruto dug his claws into the side of the post and scaled the top of it, as the rest of the lookouts weren't looking. Naruto hopped up to the top of the platform and grabbed the lookout and threw him down to the ground. If the man didn't die on impact with the ground, then his clones would take him out.

From there, Naruto made his way into the compound. He quickly stuck to the shadows as he creeped around the camp. He found a man who was standing alone and snuck up behind him. He grabbed the man around the waist and pulled him into the shadows. Before the man could yell in surprise, Naruto quickly smashed the man's head into the ground. After he smashed the man's head into the ground, he looked to see blood coming from the side of his head. _'That's weird. I know that I didn't smash his head hard enough to draw blood.'_

_"Once again, maybe it's a sign that you shouldn't be fighting in this form yet."_

Naruto decided to ignore his overprotective mother and instead decided to continue his way through the compound. As he was rushing through it, he was quickly and quietly taking out more and more bandits, heading towards where he heard a scream come from. As he made it there, he saw that it was a big building, probably the biggest, in the center of the compound. He also saw that the building had many bandits surrounding it. Getting in undetected would be a hassle.

Naruto quickly tried to make a shadow clone, but frowned as it wasn't working. He thought _'What the hell! Why can't I make a Shadow Clone? ...Damnit! In this form, I have purely youki. There's no ki, and because of that, I can't do any Jutsu.'_

Naruto racked his brain from his hiding spot, trying to come up with a plan. If he tried to charge in, he could either get his ass kicked, or the hostages in there could be killed. If he tried to blow the building up, the same thing could happen. Naruto kept racking his brain for what to do, when suddenly a plan came to him.

Naruto turned around and walked to one of the buildings next to him. From there, Naruto went to a window to see that there was no one inside. Naruto quickly started putting explosive tags around the entire building. From there, Naruto ran back to his original hiding spot and blew the tags. When the tags blew, they destroyed the entire first floor of the building, bringing the entire thing down. When the building came down, the guards guarding the big building all ran towards the explosion since they were some of the closest guards. With the front door unoccupied, Naruto quickly went inside the building. From there, the hanyou quickly made his way through the building, listening for the scream. Eventually, he found a stairway that led to some basement. Naruto went down the stairs, still following the sound of the screaming. As Naruto was making his way to the screaming, it suddenly stopped. Naruto also stopped, wondering what had happened. A few seconds later, Naruto heard a man yell "No! Please not her! Anyone but her! I'm begging you, stop!"

Naruto charged forward as fast as he could and came to a door. Naruto quickly jumped up and kicked the door down. As he ran inside, he saw that there was a bunch of people huddled together in one corner, whimpering and crying. In the middle of the floor were two bandits. They were holding onto a man's arms, keeping him from helping a small girl who was being held at knifepoint by another bandit. There was a woman on the floor who was covered with knife wounds. Surrounding them were 10 bandits.

The bandit holding the woman turned to Naruto and said, "Who the hell are you? And how did you get in here?"

Naruto said, "That doesn't matter. Unhand the little girl, now!"

The bandit started laughing and said, "Listen to this kid. He sounds like some after-school special. Well punk, this ain't some comic book. In the real world, when the hero busts through the door into a room full of bad guys, he gets his ass kicked. How about I show you? Boys, get him!"

The other bandits picked up some weapons and rushed Naruto. The first bandit to reach Naruto had a mace. He swung it at Naruto, but Naruto quickly jumped over the man. At first, he was only expecting to jump over him, but Naruto launched himself into the roof and smashed his head on it. As he fell, Naruto was cursing up a storm. _'What the hell was that? I've done that jump a hundred times!'_

_"I told you so."_

_'Tch, whatever.'_

Naruto quickly stood back up and saw that the first bandit was swinging the mace at him again. Naruto moved his hand and caught the mace in his hand, to his and the bandit's surprise. The bandit tried to pull his mace back, but Naruto had a grip on it. Naruto pulled the mace, causing the bandit to stumble forward and causing his face to have a collision course with Naruto's fist. After punching the bandit in the face, Naruto turned towards the rest of them and said, "Who's next?"

The rest of the bandits all rushed towards Naruto as Naruto slipped into a fighting stance. When the bandits got close enough, Naruto jumped up and kicked the nearest one in the face. The guy was knocked off his feet and slammed into the ground. Naruto saw that the bandits were surrounding him, making it easier for them to jump him. Naruto saw one of them charge him and knew that they were about to do just that.

Naruto blocked a punch from one bandit with his left hand. Seeing another coming from behind him, Naruto turned around and blocked the bandit's kick with his left hand. Before the other bandit could try and hit him, Naruto swung his leg around and kicked the bandit across the face. After he lowered his foot, Naruto took a step forward and planted his knee in the bandit's stomach.

Naruto stepped back to regroup, but caught a 2X4 to the head for it. Instead of hurting like hell, the 2X4 broke on contact with his head. Naruto turned to the guy who did it, to see the man with his eyes widened in surprise. Naruto said, "Now that wasn't nice."

Naruto jumped in the air and kneed the guy in the face. As Naruto was coming down, he saw one of the other bandits with a mace swinging it at him. When Naruto landed, he grabbed the guy he kneed in the face and used him to block the mace. After he took the hit, Naruto dropped him and punched the guy with the mace in the chest, the stomach, then hit him with an uppercut in the chin that knocked the man off his feet.

Naruto felt two of the bandits grab him. As soon as he felt their hands on him, Naruto started thrashing and moving, trying his best to shake the bastards off of him. Before he could, one of the last two bandits came forward and started punching him in the chest.

Naruto took four punches to the chest, and one to the face before he did something about it. Naruto focused his youki to his arms. One of the great things about demonic youki is that Demon's can control it very well. Other's, not so much. For example, when Naruto was fighting Sasuke at the Genin Selection Tournament, he injected Kurama's youki into Sasuke. When Sasuke's system was contaminated with demonic youki, it caused his entire body to be put into paralysis as his system tried to expel it. Naruto decided to do just that exact same thing again. From his arms, Naruto forced the youki into the hands of the bandits. As the bandit's bodies locked up, Naruto jumped into the air, and then kicked both of them in the chest at the same time. As he landed, Naruto raced at one of the last two bandits standing. Naruto jumped over that one and raced at the last one.

Before he could get to the last one, Naruto suddenly felt excruciating pain shoot up his spine. One second, Naruto was racing towards the bandit, the next, he was on his hands and knees gritting his teeth and growling in pain. The bandit who was holding his tail said, "Well, well, well. What do we have here? It seems the little fox doesn't like having his tail pulled. Haha!"

The bandit pulled on Naruto's tail as hard as he possibly could. Naruto rolled on his back as the bandit kept pulling on it. Naruto turned his hand towards the bandit pulling on his tail and yelled "Reiki Sword!"

A sword made of reiki appeared in Naruto's hands as he quickly pointed it at the bandit and extended it through his throat. The bandit let Naruto's tail loose as Naruto quickly stood up and went after the last bandit. As Naruto made it to him, the bandit tried to smack Naruto across the face with a hammer, but Naruto blocked it with his left forearm. Seeing that the man's defenses were down, Naruto flexed his left hand, and then swiped his claws across the man's chest, tearing five deep gouges in the man's skin.

Naruto turned to the leader of the bandits, only to see the man had the little girl in-between him and Naruto. The bandit leader said, "If you make a move, I'll kill her."

Naruto narrowed his eyes at the man as the guy held a knife to a little girls' throat. People like him made him sick. They used innocent bystanders as leverage to get what they want. Even though he felt that he shouldn't think along those lines, Naruto felt that the world would be much better if sick bastards like that would just drop dead. No, not drop dead. It would be better if they were all taken, forced to go through what they put others through, then be cremated and have their ashes dumped in an unmarked grave. They deserved to be put through the closest thing you can get to Hell on Earth before they were sent there.

While Naruto was thinking this, he didn't realize that he was creating and leaking killing intent. As the killing intent leaked out, Naruto subconsciously directed it at the man holding the girl. As the man was meeting Naruto's gaze, he started hallucinating. He started to see himself be mutilated, humiliated, and put through horrible things. And the person, who was doing it to him, was the boy who he was looking at. The same boy that he had just called an after-school special. Eventually, the mental horrors were too intense for him and he passed out.

As the man dropped to the ground, the little girl ran away from the bandit, yelling "Daddy!"

As the man grabbed his daughter in a bear hug and held onto her like a lifeline, the other hostages started standing up. As they stood up, they took a good look at Naruto. At first, Naruto could see fear on some of their faces. But as they realized that he hadn't hurt them and had actually saved him, the looks changed into ones of gratitude and respect. At first, no one moved. But then the little girl wiggled out of her father's grasp and ran over to him. She hugged him and said "Thank you, Foxy-kun."

Had she been ANYONE else instead of a cute little girl, Naruto would've been pissed at that nickname. But seeing as she was so adorable, he could do nothing but smile, bend down and hug her back. That seemed like the cue for everyone to come forward and give Naruto some gesture of thanks for his help. Eventually, while he was shaking hands with the de facto leader of the hostages, the girl saw his tail and squealed "KAWAII!"

She grabbed Naruto's tail and started hugging it, causing a jolt of pain to shoot up Naruto's spine and cause him to fall to his knees. When the girl saw what her hugging was doing to Naruto, she blushed from embarrassment and let him go, apologizing.

Naruto turned to the hostage's leader and said "How did this happen exactly?"

The man said, "We're all part of a traveling circus. We were on our way to the Fire Country Capital when these bandits came and ambushed us. They captured us and they wanted our bank account number. They've had us here for the past day trying to torture it out of us."

Naruto said "You won't have to worry about any of these people anymore. Just stay in here until I come back out to get you."

The man nodded, and Naruto walked out of the room. As he was walking out of the room, Naruto saw that the people there were grabbing the weapons of the bandits he had knocked out.

Naruto walked out of the building he was in to see that the guards still weren't there. Naruto took that time to quickly move to the shadows. From the shadows, Naruto aimed his Reiki Gun at another building and shot it down. As his Reiki Gun attack exploded near the building, it set it on fire. As people started moving to put the fire out, Naruto created a Reiki sword in his hand and rushed them. He quickly started slashing and killing the bandits that were in his way. As Naruto kept cutting bandits down, the others realized what was happening and started attacking him in bulk.

As Naruto ducked under an attack from one of the bandits, he quickly sliced the bandit's stomach open, causing the bandit to fall. Naruto quickly ran forward, jumped in the air, and kicked the nearest bandit in the face. A crowd of them tried to jump Naruto, but the half-demon was easily able to force them off of him. Naruto was easily blowing through their entire force, before he felt a sharp pain in his arm.

Looking at his arm, he saw an arrow going through it. Naruto looked to the rooftops, but couldn't see anyone. Suddenly, he heard a faint whistling in the air. Naruto quickly turned to where he heard it, but caught an arrow in the chest for it. Almost as one, the bandits on the rooftops came out of hiding with their bows and arrows. They started shooting at Naruto, causing Naruto to have to run for cover. He quickly hid in the alley between two of the buildings of the bandit camp. The arrows seemed to abruptly stop as the bandits tried to find a new angle to shoot him from.

Naruto thought he was safe to take a breather, but then he heard the faint whistling. Naruto quickly started running as an arrow hit right where his head was 2 seconds before. Naruto looked to the rooftops to see the bandits running with him and shooting arrows at him at the same time. As he was running, Naruto was looking around for any way out of the alley. Naruto looked at the objects and the ledges in the alley, and he had his way out.

Naruto quickly went to a dumpster and hopped on top of it. From there, Naruto leapt 10 feet in the air to grab the ledge of a window. Naruto quickly pulled himself up, shooting himself 10 feet farther up. As he reached the height of his jump, Naruto put his feet on the building and pushed off, back flipping through the air until he reached the building across the alley. From there, Naruto planted his feet on the building, and pushed off, launching himself to the roof of the first building. From there, Naruto saw the archers getting closer and reaching to their quiver. Luckily for Naruto, there was one next to him while the others were farther out. Naruto quickly ran for the closest archer, and jumped through the air as the archer shot. Naruto's jump propelled him to land on top of the archer. Naruto looked up to see the other archers getting ready to fire, so he pulled the unconscious archer up and used him as a shield to block the other shots. As Naruto was contemplating what to do about the other archers, he heard a voice that suspiciously sounded like his own yell "Spirit Shot!"

The black ball of energy detonated on the roof of a building and took out many of the archers. As Naruto looked up to see where the attack came from, he saw himself standing there in Super Saiyan, his palm still smoking from the attack shooting out. Super Saiyan Naruto quickly flew down to start taking out many of the archers. Demon Naruto decided to help since he knew that one lucky hit would dispel the shadow clone.

Demon Naruto hit the ground (well, roof really) on all fours and started dashing towards the other archers. He mentally noted for later that his demon form was faster on all fours than on two legs. Naruto quickly jumped from the building he was on, to the building of the closest archer. As Naruto was coming down from his jump, he saw the bandit try to line up a shot on him. But before it could sent the shot out, it was hit from behind by a ki blast, courtesy of Super Saiyan Naruto.

As Demon Naruto touched down, he saw that many of the archers were shooting at Super Saiyan Naruto. So the demonic child created a Reiki Sword and extended it to become 10 feet long. Naruto raced forward, and then swung the sword, cutting through many of the archers. As the archers turned their sights on Demon Naruto, Super Saiyan Naruto quickly started gathering energy into his palm. A black orb formed, but then increased in size exponentially. SSJ Naruto quickly turned his hand to the archers and released the attack, shouting out "Spirit Shot 10X!"

The attack completely destroyed the roof of the building it hit, and took many of the archers with it. The rest of the archers started trying to fall back, but SSJ Naruto quickly shot ki blasts at each of their backs and took them out. As SSJ Naruto landed, Demon Naruto walked over to him and said, "Where are the other clones?"

The clone Super Saiyan said "The others are still in the forests like you asked. The only reason I came was because you looked like you needed help."

Naruto nodded to the clone and said "Thanks. As a matter of fact, tell the clones to move in and take out the bandits in here. But do not mess with that (points to the building with the hostages) building. It has innocent people in it."

The clone nodded and said "I'll get right on it."

The clone then took to the skies to go tell its brothers about the new plan. Naruto looked to the ground to see what looked like every bandit in the damn camp moving towards his position. Naruto sighed loudly and charged the bandits.

If Naruto was asked to describe that battle in two words, they would be brutal and bloody. While he was stronger than any singular bandit, they were numbered close to a hundred. Naruto tried a stealth approach to take out the bandits, but he kept being spotted too many times. He tried the 'charging in guns blazing' method, and that worked for a while, but one of the bandits got a good strike to his lower back that partly hit his tail and almost took him down for the count. From there, they landed a good blow to his leg and hurt it. After that, it got easier and easier for them to land blows on Naruto, which weakened him. At the end of the night, Naruto was bleeding and surrounded by bandits. He almost lost before the cavalry arrived. The cavalry, in this case, was his Super Saiyan clones.

With the addition of the warriors, the battle quickly turned for Naruto's favor. One of the clones started peppering the bandits with ki blasts as it airlifted the real Naruto out of the dog pile of bandits. Almost as soon as that clone was clear, Naruto heard two different voices yell "Konoha Cannon!"

From two opposite sides of the bandits shot destructive beams of green ki. The attacks cut through the bandit swarm like a hot knife through butter. As they met, they exploded, taking many of the other bandits with them. From then on, one clone watched the real Naruto while the other clones started to continue the fight with the bandits. They were stuck with using mostly long-range attacks, but the tactic worked. As the morning sun rose at 6 A.M, all of the bandits were either dead or unconscious. Naruto put a few of his clones in the air as lookouts while he and the rest of his clones started separating the living and dead bandits. The dead, he hid out of sight so that the hostages wouldn't see. The type of carnage that was left after last night's battles was one that would traumatize a civilian who hadn't been desensitized to it. The unconscious bandits were all tied to buildings or poles so that they didn't move. He was hoping that the hostages would call somebody to pick up the rest of the bandits to be arrested.

By 8 A.M, the bandits were all tied up or hidden. As Naruto was about to get the hostages out of the building, one of his clones that he had in the sky came down and said, "We spotted some people making their way to the compound. We couldn't identify them from so far away, but they don't seem to be with these bandits."

Naruto told his clone to keep him posted. As the minutes rolled by, he was told that the people coming close to him were a team of Konoha Jounin. Apparently, he was closer to Konoha than he thought. As a matter of fact, they were able to see the glow from the fires of the night before and came to investigate.

Naruto quickly got the hostages out of the building they were in and told them that the bandits were gone. He informed them about the Jounin who would help them, and quickly got out of there before he was found. While the Jounin coming were his comrades, he didn't want to explain his demonic form just yet. Naruto quickly took off the opposite way from the Jounin. As he was going, he changed back to normal, then transformed into a Super Saiyan. As he took flight, he looked at the landscape and saw that he didn't recognize any of it. His assumption from the night before was correct. As realization dawned on him, Naruto smacked himself in the head. When he left the Hokage's Tower last night, he went the wrong way. As he realized this, Naruto thought _'Damn, that harpy Sakura is right. I am a baka.'_

Naruto quickly flew to Konoha, and from there, took off down the road to JuuHachi Town. Naruto could've pushed himself and made it to JuuHachi Town in an hour if he wanted to, but that would've expended a lot of his energy, and he was relatively low from the whole bandit business anyway. So Naruto flew at a comfortable speed to JuuHachi town, making it in two hours flat.

* * *

(With Shino and Kurenai-10:00 A.M-JuuHachiTown)

Shino and Kurenai had just entered JuuHachi Town. As they entered, they were both on the lookout for the opposition that Shino's bug had told them about. But as they were looking around, they found none. This didn't assuage them at all. The enemy could be waiting until they let down their guard. So they were on edge since they stepped into town. As they blended in with the crowd, they kept a keen eye open for anyone who looked dangerous.

Kurenai walked up to one of the women on the street and said, "Excuse me, ma'am. Have you seen any other Konoha ninja around here?"

The lady said "Now why the hell would you ask me about those bast..." The lady's sentence died in her mouth as she looked at Kurenai. Mostly, the Konoha headband on Kurenai's forehead. The lady then yelled out "LEAF NINJA! THEY'RE RIGHT HERE!"

Another guy yelled out "GET THEM!"

Before Shino and Kurenai could think _'What the hell just happened?'_ The citizens of JuuHachi Town swarmed them.

* * *

(With Naruto-10: 10 A.M-JuuHachi Town)

As Naruto touched down, he started flying for where his friends were last. As he was going, he saw a disturbance. Looking down, he saw that Shino and Kurenai were being swarmed and attacked by the people of JuuHachi Town. Naruto decided to stop it before anything bad could happen. He dropped to the ground and told Kurenai and Shino to drop to the floor. As they did, he flared his aura, sending out a shockwave that knocked the people to the floor. Naruto quickly grabbed both Shino and Kurenai, and flew away before the people could identify him.

He quickly landed at his friends' hideout and deposited Shino and Kurenai. After landing, Naruto went to the warehouse and knocked on the door. As he did, the door was flung open as Hinata raced into his arms. She said, "I missed you."

Naruto said, "It goes without saying, but I missed you too."

Seeing that they were hugging, Kurenai muttered "Just what are we, chopped liver?"

Shino sarcastically said "Oh yeah, we're fine. We weren't attacked by a village full of crazy people or anything."

Hinata turned to them and said "Sorry about that. But come on in."

She led them into the warehouse where Neji and Lee were lightly sparring. They couldn't do much since there was a chance they would need their energy to fight later. Tenten was throwing her weapons and hitting some targets on the other side of the warehouse. As Naruto showed up, she secretly let out a sigh of relief. When she saw that the other members of her team were moving towards Naruto, she did too. When she reached him, she said, "Naruto-kun, how is Gai-sensei?"

Naruto said "Don't worry, I got him home in time. The doctors said that he was fine; he'll make a full recovery. For now, let's concentrate on getting the bastards that put him in the hospital in the first place."

The teams nodded, then Tenten said, "Before you try and rush in guns blazing, you should know something. Yesterday, I went out to hear what was going on around town, and they said that they put up another wanted poster. They don't know the names of the people on the wanted poster, but I'm pretty sure that it's supposed to be you and Hinata."

Tenten reached into her pouch and pulled out a rolled up piece of paper. When she pulled it out, right there on the cover were both Hinata and Naruto. Well, not exactly them. In the picture, Hinata's hair was completely black while in reality it more of a dark blue. Also in the picture, they had Naruto's nose slightly off. The picture's nose was more crooked and narrow than his, as if he was some stereotypical villain. Underneath their names was a caption that said 'Wanted for questioning about the destruction of the KuroiGetsu hotel.'

Naruto shrugged and said "Meh, I knew it would happen sooner or later. I wouldn't be surprised if by the end of the day, Shino and Kurenai-sensei's faces aren't added to those posters also. But onto other matters, I'm starving, what kind of food we got to eat here?"

Neji said, "We don't really have much. We weren't expecting to be on the run."

Naruto said "In the picture, they have me in my normal state. If I stay in my Super Saiyan state, they won't be able to recognize me. I'll try and pick us up some stuff."

Neji said, "Super what?"

Naruto realized his mistake and said, "When my hair turns blonde and my eyes turn green."

Neji said, "You finally settled for a name for that?"

Naruto nodded, and took down a list of everything that they needed. Then, Naruto went out and got it. As he was going home, he looked down an alleyway to see these people in red shirts and black pants roughing up this poor defenseless man. Instead of just going on his business, Naruto decided to intervene. He quickly dropped his bags of groceries and walked down the alley. As he reached it, he grabbed the heads of two members of the Privaron and smashed them together. Before the other two could react, Naruto jumped up kicked both of them in the head. As the bodies dropped, Naruto turned to the man they were roughing up. He helped the man up to his feet and said, "Are you okay, sir?"

The man said "Yeah, thanks to you. I can't thank you enough for helping me, young man."

Naruto smiled and said, "It was nothing. But what were those guys messing with you for anyway?"

The guy said, "They thought I knew where those Konoha ninjas were."

Naruto got a quizzical look on his face and said, "Why would they think that?"

The man said, "It's because I don't believe they blew that building up. They could have, but the fire was started by a ninja. With ninjas being the masters of stealth that they are, there could be 1000 ninja in this town and we could possibly be ignorant of it. There's simply not enough evidence to convince me. And because I don't think they did, they thought I must've been helping them."

Naruto nodded, and told the guy to have a nice day. Naruto then turned a corner into a dead end, and took off; making a beeline for the warehouse their team was based in. As he arrived, he informed everyone that the Privaron were looking for them. Although the news was bad, the others didn't really react to it. The civilians were already hunting them, what difference does a few more make?

Kurenai said, "Okay team. We need to continue where Team Gai left off. We have to find a member of Rodorigo Borruja's gang and get them to tell us where their base is. As soon as that's done, we can capture him and use him to clear our names. Now, we need to get out there and find them. While we're out there, I want everyone to always be near at least one other member person. I don't want any of you getting hurt. Your first order is to come back alive, not kill yourself for an informant. Understand?"

The genin at once nodded. Kurenai smiled and said, "Well then, get disguised and get out there."

* * *

(8:00 PM-JuuHachi Town)

Hours later, the genin returned home. They had nothing. It seemed that the last time that Team Gai had almost got an informant, it spooked the rest of the Privaron. Now, they only traveled in at least groups of 4. Also, the Privaron were barely out anymore. It seemed that the ones that Naruto stumbled upon were some of the only ones allowed out.

After returning to the warehouse empty handed, the group decided to get some early rest and start fresh in the morning. Kurenai volunteered to take the first shift. As she was watching, Naruto dozed off.

Then, 30 minutes later, all hell broke loose.

Naruto was woken up to a loud bang. When he shot awake, he saw that his fellow Shinobi were also waking up while Kurenai's head was moving from side to side, looking for trouble. Again, they heard a bang. Then, they heard another. Looking at the main door to the warehouse that they locked, they saw that there was a giant dent in it. With every 'BANG', the dent became bigger and bigger. Eventually, with the final 'BANG', there was a giant hole in the door. Through the door came a giant group of people wearing all types of red shirts and black pants. That signaled to the shinobi that the people coming in were members of the Privaron. As the members were piling in, one of them opened the door that they put a hole in to let the others in at a faster rate.

As soon as the Privaron started pouring in, the shinobi got ready. Tenten pulled out a staff, Lee released his weights, Neji and Hinata activated their Byakugan, Shino got into a fighting stance, and Naruto increased his power output to it's maximum in his normal form. As the members of the Privaron came closer, both Naruto and Hinata held out their bare palms at the gangbangers. Black orbs of energy started to form by their palm. When the orbs were big enough, they yelled out "Spirit Shot!"

The black orbs shot out of their hands and crashed against the mob of the Privaron. As the orbs exploded, they not only kicked up a smokescreen, they let loose a flash of light. Through the light came dozens of kunai that crashed into the Privaron and cut down their members. But even though the ki attacks and the kunai whittled down their numbers, they still kept coming. Neji, Hinata, and Lee both charged forward in order to fight the Privaron members. Shino let his bugs loose in order to drain the gang while Tenten and Naruto both stayed behind in order to pepper them with long range attacks.

Hinata charged the group and dodged under a punch from one of the Privaron. She then hit him three times with Juken strikes to paralyze him, and moved onto the others. Neji was right beside her, watching her back. When one of the members of the Privaron tried to attack her, Neji was quick to either paralyze them with Juken strikes, or knock them unconscious with a palm strike to the chest. As the two Hyuuga left a trail of paralyzed bodies behind them, Lee rushed forward and yelled "Leaf Hurricane!"

Lee's attack knocked out any Privaron that were conscious. As it was going on, they were easily able to dispatch the Privaron, but it seemed that there was no end to them. As they were attacking, they heard someone yell "Fire Style: Grand Fireball Jutsu!"

From somewhere in the dark came a giant ball of fire. The attack raced towards Hinata, Neji, and Lee. Before it reached them, Neji turned to Lee and yelled "Lee, move!"

The only confirmation that Lee heard Neji was the fact that Lee disappeared from Neji's sight. Neji turned to Hinata, and they both nodded, realizing what they would have to do. Both of them started spinning, quickly increasing in speed and letting out chakra from each chakra node in their body. As they increased the chakra output, both of them yelled out "Hakkeshou Kaiten!"

The spinning orbs of chakra easily knocked away the ball of fire. As they came out of it, both Hinata and Neji were a little dizzy, seeing as they had only learned the attack a week ago and didn't have time to perfect it. The Privaron moved forward to hit the teenagers, but stopped when Naruto dropped down in front of them, holding his sword in front of him. The Privaron were about to stop, but they heard someone, the same guy who launched the Grand Fireball, say "What are you waiting for? It's just some dumb kid. Who cares if he's a demon spawn! He can't possibly take all of you. ATTACK!"

That seemed to convince the Privaron to charge forward. Naruto heard the man speak, but he started thinking after he heard the man say 'demon spawn'. Sadly, he had to abandon that train of thought as the Privaron charged him. Naruto quickly jumped back from one member's punch, then he jumped forward and stabbed the man in the gut. Naruto pulled his sword out just in time to dodge a strike from one of the Privaron. Naruto then cut him on his arm, then twisted and kicked the man with the heel of his foot. One of the Privaron had a small pipe that he tried to smack Naruto with, but Naruto quickly sliced through it, then hit the guy in the stomach with his knee. After making the guy double over in pain, Naruto hit him in his head with the pommel of his sword. As one of them tried to attack him, Naruto quickly flipped back and hit him in the chin with the toe of his sandal. Naruto then took a step forward and cut the man in the chest.

As the Privaron started to back up, Hinata and Neji both entered the match to assist Naruto. Together, they easily started to push the Privaron back. Naruto was slashing at the Privaron left and right, but when the went to strike down one of them, a man in a black cloak appeared and blocked the strike with a broadsword. Naruto gritted his teeth, pulled his sword back, and struck again. The man easily blocked the strike and Naruto kept striking, but the man easily met every strike. As they were fighting, Lee said "Naruto-kun! That man was the one who stopped us from getting information from one of the Privaron a few days ago!"

Naruto nodded and kept attacking. Sadly, he and the guy were evenly matched. The man was easily more skilled than Naruto, so he could easily get through Naruto's defenses. When he did, Naruto had faster reaction time, so he could dodge the man's strikes. Eventually the man said, "I grow tired of fighting here. Follow me to your death, if you have the balls to, demon!"

The man in the cloak quickly jumped high and left the warehouse. Before anyone could get him to stop, Naruto took flight and followed him. Naruto followed the man into a secluded clearing a mile out of town. Naruto landed and said "Why did you draw me out here, Kazuya?"

The man in the cloak chuckled and said, "So you found out who I am, huh? Good."

Kazuya then threw off the cloak. Kazuya stood there wearing a black Jounin flak flack jacket without the Uzumaki spiral on the back. His jacket was open, showing his red shirt underneath. He was wearing black Shinobi pants and sandals. Kazuya said "Now I can kill you without that stupid cloak on."

Naruto narrowed his eyes at Kazuya and said, "What makes you think you can defeat me?"

Kazuya said, "Don't sound so high and mighty, you damned demon. I know I can defeat you with one hand tied behind my back, but just in case you tried some demon trickery, I decided to enlist some help."

Out of the tree line came a man and a woman. The man had short, spiky black hair. He had a tattoo of an eight-point star on his left cheek. On the right side of his nose was a black stud, and he had black earrings on. On his side was a tanto in its sheath. The handle was wrapped in black gauze. The man had a manic look on his face.

While the man looked like he just broke out of the insane asylum, the woman looked like she just stepped out of a model magazine. The woman had long white hair that went to the end of her tailbone. She had full red lips, high cheekbones, and alabaster skin. She was wearing a green battle kimono that ended at mid thigh, giving Naruto a great view of her shapely legs and her, at least, D cup breasts. The most exotic feature on the woman was her eyes. She had intoxicating, amethyst eyes that seemed to put Naruto under a spell.

The man said, "So boy, we meet again. Maybe this time, I'll finally be able to cut you up and leave a mark."

The woman just smiled at Naruto, which seemed to cause his stomach to drop. She said "Hello, Naruto-kun. It's so nice to see you again."

Kazuya started laughing and said "Haha! Look at the boy. He's ogling you like some horny teenager. Obviously, all those years of prison haven't diminished your seduction skills, huh Sakuya? Maybe me and you should put those skills of yours to the test sometime?"

Sakuya scoffed at Kazuya and said, "As if I would with you." Sakuya then looked at Naruto. At her first gaze, Naruto had a desire to do things with her that wouldn't exactly allow the author to keep this story 'T' rated, but at her current one, he felt like deer looking into the hungry eyes of a lioness. Sakuya said, in the sweetest voice Naruto had ever heard, "I like my men stronger, with more stamina, and much younger."

Kazuya thought _'Damn, I forgot about that little problem of hers. How come a woman that hot is a fucking pedophile?'_

Sakuya started moving closer and closer to Naruto, until she was right next to him. At that angle, if Naruto decided to just look down, he would be looking right down her dress. The close proximity caused Naruto to blush a little. Sakuya said "Would you please take me away from here to somewhere more, private?"

Naruto was tempted to say yes, until a voice in his head said _**"NARUTO UZUMAKI! YOU HAD BETTER BACK AWAY FROM THAT TRAMP OR SO HELP ME I'LL MAKE YOU WATCH THE RECORDING OF ME AND YOUR FATHER'S WEDDING NIGHT!"**_

His mother's scream in his head, and the mental picture that came with that threat caused Naruto's mind to clear of anything dealing with sex. As he did, he quickly jumped back from Sakuya to put some distance between them. Kazuya said, "Maybe your seduction skills have dulled a bit?"

Kazuya said "Anyway, before I was interrupted by the horny pedophile, I was about to introduce Miroku here."

Miroku pulled out his tanto. Under the moonlight, Naruto saw that it read 'Killer of Demons' on it. Miroku smiled and said "Oh, me and little Naruto are gonna pick up right where we left off before that coughing bastard and the Hokage's son interrupted us."

Naruto narrowed his eyes and said "Well, how about we stop talking and get to fighting?"

Kazuya smirked and said, "What makes you think you'll win? You're outnumbered three to one."

A voice above them said "Not quite."

There, hovering in the air was Hinata. Right behind her, Tenten hopped out of the tree line and landed to Naruto's right. Hinata touched down on Naruto's left and got into a Juken fighting stance. Tenten quickly pulled out her own tanto to match Miroku's and dropped into a defensive stance. Tenten said, "Naruto-kun, you take the red haired guy. I'll take the one with the tanto."

Hinata didn't say anything, but she was glaring daggers at Sakuya. Even though she wasn't there to see the entire conversation, she could tell by the look in the woman's eyes that she was all bad news. Before Naruto or Tenten could make any move, Hinata disappeared from Naruto's side and reappeared with her index fingers jutted out at the previous location of Sakuya's throat. Sakuya had jumped back to dodge the strike she saw Hinata try to hit her with. Sakuya dashed forward and moved her wrist, causing a hidden four-inch blade to pop out. She used that blade to slash at Hinata's stomach. She narrowly nicked Hinata and caused a small bit of blood to drop.

That seemed to be the queue to start the battle. Tenten quickly dashed at Miroku and opened up with a slash to his throat. Miroku easily blocked the strike with his own tanto and kicked Tenten in the stomach. Miroku pulled back his empty hand and aimed a punch for Tenten's head, but Tenten quickly twisted her tanto into a reverse grip and used the tanto to smack Miroku's fist away. As Miroku grabbed his hand in pain, Tenten went for another slash to Miroku and landed a small nick to his chest. Miroku smirked and said "Maybe this will actually be a bit challenging."

Tenten charged at Miroku again, but this time, Miroku was ready. He saw her go for a slash to his neck, so Miroku quickly ducked down and lightly cut Tenten's leg before she could hop back. Luckily for Tenten, the cut was shallow and she could still walk. Miroku didn't let her go that easily though. As soon as Tenten hopped back, the crazed ninja was quickly on her. Miroku started slashing at Tenten, who matched him blow for blow. Miroku said, "It seems that we're at a stalemate. We're both evenly skilled when it comes to a tanto."

Miroku then threw his tanto to the ground and reached behind his back. Tenten saw that he was defenseless and dashed forward. She pulled her tanto back, hoping to put more power into her swing and end this match in one shot. As she moved her tanto forward, a weapon easily blocked it. Then, a mirror image of that same weapon was stabbed into her forearm. Tenten screamed and reflexively let go of her tanto. She hopped back and looked at the weapons the man had. The handles for the weapons were relatively short; barely long enough for Miroku to grip them with his entire hand. It looked like a tri-pronged fork with the middle prong longer than the others. Tenten scowled when she realized what they were. _'Sai! Damnit, why did it have to be sai? They're the only weapon I haven't mastered yet.'_

Tenten still had the scowl on her face as she pulled out two kunai. She ran forward and started slashing at Miroku, but it seemed that Miroku wouldn't tolerate any of that. He started to block her strikes as he saw her pushing him back. Miroku's pride wouldn't let him be forced to retreat from some teenaged girl, so he easily intercepted her kunai in-between the prongs on his sai. He quickly rotated his wrist, causing the kunai to go flying. As he kunai went flying, he crouched down and tried to stab her in the stomach with the sai. Tenten saw the attack coming and jumped back, but not before the middle prong of the sai lightly penetrated her stomach.

Tenten put her hand to the wound as it started bleeding. Before she could tend to it at all, she saw Miroku on her again. It seemed that he wanted to finish that battle soon. Tenten started backing up as Miroku started getting closer and closer with his attacks. Before she could try to fight back, Miroku lightly nicked her again. But this time, he also kicked her in the chest as hard as he could, sending her flying back into a tree trunk. As Tenten fell to the ground, Miroku stood over her with his sai ready to stab her.

Tenten could do nothing but look on in horror as the sai descended.

* * *

(With Hinata)

After being slightly nicked by the white haired temptress, Hinata rushed forward and let loose with another barrage of Juken strikes. Sakuya dodged the strikes, making it look like child's play. Sakuya tried to swing for Hinata with the blade again, but Hinata quickly struck Sakuya in the palm, causing her to pull her hand back in pain. As she did, Hinata quickly jumped and spun, hitting Sakuya in the temple with the heel of her foot.

Sakuya was knocked off her feet and landed on the ground. Hinata rushed forward with a death glare and kept striking at Sakuya. Hinata sent a feint at Sakuya's defense, only to send a real Juken palm strike to Sakuya's stomach. The woman was again knocked onto the ground. Hinata rushed forward and jumped into the air. As she started falling, she stuck her leg out to strike Sakuya with. Her foot struck against the ground as Sakuya moved out of the way and used her hidden blade to stab Hinata easily. Hinata let out a scream of pain, only for Sakuya to pull the blade out and stab her again. Hinata grabbed Sakuya, and, in an amazing feat of strength, tossed her ten feet away. Sakuya got on her feet and said, "Well, well, well, it looks like the little Hyuuga decided to finally grow a backbone. Y'know, I saw you around the village all the time when you were a little girl. How you would always run away from the smallest of things, always cower behind your dear old daddy, like a coward. It was so pathetic."

Hinata narrowed her eyes and put her hands together. Her hands started glowing yellow, and then she pulled them apart. As Hinata pulled her hands apart, a yellow string of energy connected her palms. The yellow string turned into a bow as Hinata moved her hands as if she was holding back the string of a real bow. Hinata said, "Well, I guess I'll just have to show you what this 'little Hyuuga' can do. Spirit Arrow!"

Hinata let loose the string as an arrow of energy shot out. Sakuya could barely get out of the way in time as the arrow flew past her and hit a tree behind her. Hinata started shooting at Sakuya more and more, causing Sakuya to continue to dodge. Sakuya dodged out of the way, then swung her arm at Hinata. Hinata didn't see the senbon flying through the air until the moonlight glinted on it for a split second. The senbon was on a direct course for her eye, but Hinata quickly cut power to the bow and moved her hand in the way of the senbon. The senbon went completely through her hand. Hinata screamed in pain as her hand was stabbed through. Sakuya saw what happened and said, "Wow, you're pretty quick. Few people have ever been able to dodge a senbon from my senbon launcher. But it looks like it hit you still. That's too bad. Naruto-koi will be _soooooooo _alone with his little puppy love crush in the hospital. ...Wait, I have an idea. Maybe while you're holed up in the hospital, I'll show him exactly what a real woman can do. By the time I'm through with him, he won't even remember your-WHOA!"

Sakuya was interrupted, as she had to jump to the side to dodge a white orb of energy. A split second later, the Heaven's Wrath attack exploded. Sakuya looked where the attack came from to see Hinata standing there. Hinata's hair was blowing in the wind, even though the wind was nowhere near that strong. Her usually lavender eyes seemed to glow with some sort of unknown power. Even though Sakuya wasn't close enough to realize it, the air around Hinata seemed to get heavier and smaller particles of dust started to rise off of the ground and disintegrate as it reached a certain height. Lastly, a fiery blue aura was emanating from Hinata's body. Even though Sakuya knew barely anything about Hinata, even she knew that the girl was PISSED OFF!

Hinata held out the palm of her uninjured hand as she said, "Stay away from Naru-kun! Spirit Shot!"

Out of Hinata's hand came a black orb that shot forward. Sakuya barely moved in time to get away from it. Sakuya swung her arm and shot a senbon at where the Spirit Shot came from, but the senbon only hit air. Sakuya looked around for the bluenette, but couldn't find her. Sakuya heard a painful, but muffled grunt behind her and as she turned around, she saw Hinata cradling her injured hand with the senbon pulled out. Hinata closed her eyes, and then said "Mystical Palm Jutsu!"

Hinata's uninjured hand was surrounded in a green aura as Hinata grabbed her injured hand. The green energy flowed into Hinata's hand, and Sakuya could see the hand healing up. Sakuya shot another senbon, but Hinata quickly flew out of the way. Sakuya kept shooting senbon at Hinata, but Hinata kept dodging them. Eventually Hinata abandoned completely healing her hand and flew down towards Sakuya. Sakuya sent more and more senbon at Hinata, but Hinata easily saw them being shot and grabbed them out of the sky. Sakuya kept swinging her arm, shooting senbon until she heard a click. Looking at the arm where she hid her senbon launcher, she muttered, "Damn. Outta ammo."

Hinata disappeared from her original spot and landed behind Sakuya. Hinata held her fully extended arm out, showing her palm to the back of Sakuya's shirt. Hinata clenched her fingers and thumb, and then pulled her arm back. She yelled out "8 Trigrams: Air Palm!"

Hinata thrusted her hand forward, sending a compact concentration of chakra to hit Sakuya in the back. Sakuya screamed in pain and dropped unconscious. Hinata let loose a sigh, and fell to the ground. She put her hands behind her to catch her, but then she shot in the air as a jolt of pain shot up her hand. _'I forgot. My hand still isn't healed. Probably won't be back to normal for a while. And that horrible woman stabbed me in the stomach twice. Besides, this isn't the time to calm down. There are still two enemies around.'_

Hinata looked around to Naruto's fight. He seemed to be holding his own very well against Kazuya. Naruto had a few nicks, but for the most part, he was holding his own against Kazuya. Hinata looked towards where Miroku and Tenten were, only to see Tenten get kicked in the stomach and hit a tree. Hinata thought _'That man-stealing tramp is finally getting what she deserves. But if I let her get hurt, Naru-kun will never forgive me. Damnit, sometimes love is so hard.'_

Hinata saw Miroku standing over Tenten and knew that she had to act right now. Hinata put her hands together and formed a bow with her energy. Hinata aimed for Miroku's stomach and let loose an arrow.

* * *

(With Tenten)

Tenten saw the sai descend closer and closer to her stomach. She closed her eyes and thought _'I wish I could've at least gotten some time to know what it was like to have a nice boyfriend like Naru-kun.'_

Before the sai hit her though, she heard Miroku mutter "Shit," and jump back. As he jumped back, a yellow arrow passed through where he originally was. Seeing her chance, Tenten hopped back to her feet as Hinata ran over to where she was standing. Tenten looked at Hinata and knew that it was because of Hinata that she was alive. Tenten quickly muttered "Thanks," and reached behind her to grab a scroll. She unsealed a Bo staff and put the scroll back to its' original spot. She turned to Hinata and said "I know that you hate me right now, and to be honest, I don't care all that much. I need your help to beat him. Will you help me?"

Hinata said 'You're right, I do hate you. But Naru-kun would never forgive me if I let something happen to you. So I'll help you." Hinata's next statement carried a small edge to it. "But just because I'm helping you with this doesn't mean that I'm gonna just let you steal my boyfriend."

Tenten looked at Hinata incredulously and said, "There's someone standing in front of us trying to kill us and you want to argue about boy problems? We'll have this conversation later."

Tenten quickly charged forward, leaving Hinata in her original spot. Hinata quickly formed a bow of energy and waited until she could get an open shot. Tenten swung the bo staff at the crazed knife wielder, but Miroku leaned back to dodge the strike. Tenten quickly reversed her swing and hit the man in the right side of the stomach. As her blow connected, Tenten swung the staff around to hit the man on the left side of his head. This time, Miroku ducked under the strike and tried to stab Tenten in the stomach. But the strike failed because of the extended reach of the bo staff. As the blow hit nothing but air, Tenten spun and swung the bo staff out, trying to take off Miroku's head. Miroku dropped to the ground to avoid the strike, then popped back up to his feet and tried to stab Tenten again. This time, Tenten jumped over him.

As she jumped over him, Hinata released an arrow and hit the man in his arm, causing him to drop one of the sai he was carrying. As he dropped it, Tenten rushed forward and started swinging her bo staff at him. She started pushing him back farther and farther. Without his second sai, he wasn't at his best and Tenten was able to push him back. As Tenten pushed him farther back, he tried to stab at her again. Tenten ducked under the strike and struck him in his shin, causing him to yelp in pain. He was forced to favor one leg, which didn't exactly help him when Hinata shot him in his remaining good leg, causing him to drop to the ground.

As Miroku dropped to the ground, Tenten nodded to Hinata, silently thanking her.

* * *

(With Naruto)

Throughout the entire match, the half demon was matching Kazuya blow for blow. Just like before in the warehouse, it seemed that Naruto and Kazuya were evenly matched. That was, until Kazuya decided to do Jutsu.

As Kazuya kicked Naruto in the chest and knocked him away, Kazuya laid his sword down and said, "You like tricks, don't you demon? Well, let's see how you like this one. I learned this right before that green wearing bastard and his Cyclops butt-fucker put me in jail. Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

In a puff of smoke, 3 more Kazuya's appeared, all with giant broadswords. Kazuya said, "Those other whores of yours might be able to survive against Sakuya and Miroku, but you won't survive. You were barely keeping up with one of me. How will you keep up with four solid copies of me?"

Naruto smirked at Kazuya and said "Like this. Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Naruto created three clones, one for each Kazuya Shadow Clone. Kazuya stammered out "H-h-how? It took me years of training to be able to make three. There's no way that you've put as much work into this technique as me."

Naruto smirked and said, "Maybe I'm just better than you."

Naruto rushed forward to fight Kazuya while his clones also fought. Naruto ducked under Kazuya's broadsword and punched him in the stomach. As Kazuya backed up, Naruto held his hand out at Kazuya. In front of his hand, a blood red orb of energy was formed. Naruto smirked at Kazuya while Kazuya muttered "I always you knew it. You really are a demon."

Naruto said, "Let's see how you do against this. Demon's Rage!"

Naruto shot the blood red orb of energy at Kazuya, who barely jumped out of the way. As he jumped out of the way, Naruto reappeared right next to him. Naruto kicked Kazuya in the chin, causing him to be launched into the sky. Naruto flew up to where he was, and kicked him down. As Kazuya landed on the ground painfully, Naruto stretched out his fingers and tucked his thumb into his palm. He focused ki into his hand, causing a yellow blade of energy to form. Naruto flew down in a dive-bomb towards Kazuya, yelling "Spirit Sword!"

Naruto moved his sword forward, intending to hit Kazuya in the head. Kazuya saw where Naruto was aiming and hopped up and ran. As he ran, Naruto saw that he was gonna miss, so he aimed the sword at Kazuya's head as he was running. Naruto forced the Spirit Sword to extend, and it grew in length until it pierced Kazuya. Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on your viewpoint, Naruto's aim was off and instead; he stabbed Kazuya through the stomach.

At Kazuya's scream of pain, Hinata and Tenten brightened up at the fact that victory seemed to be a sure thing. Naruto landed on the ground and dismissed the Spirit Sword. Even though the sword was gone, Kazuya was still on the ground, writhing in pain. Naruto started walking towards Kazuya, keeping his eye on the swordsman in case he tried to pull something out of his sleeve.

As Naruto was walking, he felt his foot crush something. As he looked down, he saw the plume of purple smoke envelop him. As the plume of smoke covered him, Naruto accidentally took a breath, breathing in the same poison that killed Gai.

When the poisonous smoke cloud enveloped Naruto, both Tenten and Hinata yelled out "Naru-kun!"

Their rivalry forgotten, the two girls rushed to Naruto's position. They both ran towards Naruto's position, only for him to scream and flare his aura. When he flared his aura, the cloud of poison was blown away, leaving Naruto there looking like it hadn't affected him at all.

Kazuya smirked at Naruto and said, "You still fell into my trap, you demon. Now, that poison will course through your body until it reaches your heart and kills you! Even if I die right here, I'll still have my revenge."

Naruto closed his eyes and called on Kurama's chakra. As he drew on it, he forced it through his entire system, giving him a blood red fox like aura. Naruto said "You won't be getting your revenge any time soon, Kazuya. Right now, as we speak, this chakra is flooding my veins and destroying your poison. I'm not going anywhere."

As Naruto ended his speech, the last of Kazuya's poison was burned out of his system. But the smirk on Kazuya's face should've alerted Naruto that something wasn't right. Kazuya said, "Oh you are going somewhere. STRAIGHT TO HELL!"

As Kazuya yelled the last part of his statement, someone threw a gallon of red liquid at Naruto. When it landed on him, everything was quiet. If was as if everyone was stunned silent. But that silence was only for a second, as it was interrupted by Naruto's bloodcurdling scream of horror. "AAAAARRRGH!"

* * *

(End)


	11. The Bloody Situation

Okay guys, here is the latest installment of Dragon's Rebirth Chapter 11. And I have some good news, I GOT INFAMOUS 2! THAT GAME IS AWESOME! I also got Pokemon: SoulSilver and Marvel vs. Capcom 3. Although, no one ask me for a match in those last two. I just started SoulSilver and I completely suck at MvC3.

(8:30 P.M-JuuHachi Town)

As the gallon of liquid was thrown on the object of her affection, Tenten was unable to say a word. As a matter of fact no one was. Until Naruto's bloodcurdling, pain-filled cry filled the air. After letting out that horrible cry, Naruto dropped to the ground and was shaking in pain. Both Tenten and Hinata yelled out "NARUTO!"

They both rushed towards Naruto. Forgetting about the liquid, they kneeled down and comforted Naruto. Hinata cradled Naruto's head in her lap, while Tenten grabbed onto his hand for dear life. She turned to the monster who ordered that liquid to be dumped on Naruto and yelled "What kind of a sick person are you?"

Kazuya started laughing out loud. He said "Me? A sick person? I'm not the one fucking some demon. No matter what that fool of a Hokage said, I knew that that monster was just trying to get on our good side, just so it could get the sick pleasure of betraying people who trusted it. If it wasn't for your dumbass sensei and his pet cyclops, I would've succeeded in poisoning that demon and ridding all of Konohagakure of it's taint. I always knew that that..."

Kazuya scrunched up his face in disgust, pointed at Naruto, and paused in his speech for a moment, as if to think of a word to describe the sick, twisted abomination that rested near Hinata and Tenten. He finally settled on a word "..._thing_ was nothing more than a Demon in human skin. And now, I have proof. Nothing else could've reacted that horribly to that."

Tenten looked at Kazuya as if he was the devil incarnate. She said "You're lucky Naru-kun's so hurt, otherwise I'd make you pay for what you did to him!"

Kazuya smirked and said "As if you could possibly hurt me."

Throughout that entire speech, Hinata was looking down at Naruto, her face shielded from sight. Hinata said, in a very low voice "She might not..."

Hinata then looked up and gazed at Kazuya. On her face, there was no expression of anger. No narrowed eyes, no flaring nostrils, no clenched teeth at all. As a matter of fact, if you only based your opinion on those facts, you would think that she was just stoic. But her eyes told a different story. Hinata's eyes were full of nothing but hate. No happiness, no love, nothing to remind someone that they were looking into the eyes of one of the happiest people in Konoha.

Hinata's aura flared up around her, stronger than it had ever been in her life. Hinata, with her eyes still on Kazuya, said "...but I will."

Hinata disappeared from Naruto's side and reappeared right in front of Kazuya. Hinata aimed a right hook at Kazuya's head, but Kazuya hopped back to dodge the attack. As he landed, he felt pain shoot up his spine as he remembered his wound. The wound was so horrible that he dropped to his knees in pain. As he tried to get back up to his feet, Hinata formed her bow of energy again and yelled out "Spirit Arrow!"

Hinata quickly shot out arrow after arrow at Kazuya, but Kazuya quickly started to move, even with that horrible stab wound in his stomach. Amazingly, he was able to dodge all of Hinata's arrows. As Hinata was shooting, Tenten took out a kunai and waited for the right moment. As Kazuya started moving closer and closer to the shadows, Tenten had her chance. She chuked her kunai right at Kazuya, and it landed in his leg. Kazuya hit the ground in pain of the stabbing as Hinata got into a special stance. She spread her legs slightly and put her right leg back. She bent her knees slightly in order to lower her center of gravity. She moved her hands to her right hip and them, and cupped them. As she did, a reddish orange orb of energy started forming inbetween her hands. As the orb grew bigger, Hinata moved her hands farther apart in order to compensate for the orb. As the orb reached a certain threshold of size, it changed form. Instead of an orb of energy, it transformed into a raging firestorm condensed into an orb.

Hinata let the first tidbit of emotion on her face when she narrowed her eyes and glared at Kazuya. She said, in an even tone, "This is for Naruto. Fire Style: Solar Destruction Jutsu!"

Hinata thrusted her hands forward, and as she did, the orb of fire opened up and let loose a gigantic tongue of fire. Kazuya tried to limp away, but as he moved, the fire turned on a dime and chased him. Eventually, the fire caught up with him and engulfed him.

Tenten, who was still glaring at Kazuya's former position, said "Good riddance."

Hinata closed her eyes for a second, then opened them. She said "I can still feel his energy. He wasn't hit. Stay on your guard."

Before Hinata and Tenten could do anything, someone ran past them and jumped through the fire. That person helped Kazuya get to his feet. As Hinata saw the person, she thought, _'I thought I took Sakuya down.'_

Sakuya grabbed Kazuya and took off. Tenten said "They're getting away."

Before Tenten could move to follow them, Hinata said "No, Tenten. We have to get Naru-kun back to the others. That's our priority for now."

Tenten looked like she was about to argue, but when she heard a pain-filled groan from Naruto, she quickly relented. Looking over to where they left Miroku, she wasn't surprised to see him gone. Tenten said "You're right, Hinata. We'll get them back later. For now, we have to make sure Naruto-kun's safe."

Before they started moving Naruto, Tenten took a vial out of one of her scrolls and scooped up as much of the liquid as possible. As she was about to pick him up, she saw a brown belt on his waist. Then, the belt started moving on it's own accord. Tenten yelled out "What the hell is that?"

Hinata said "We don't have time for this. We gotta help him."

Then, with Hinata's help, she got Naruto to his feet. Even though he was only 5' tall, he weighed a ton! Luckily Hinata was a lot stronger than she looked. With Hinata's help, Tenten was able to get Naruto moving back towards JuuHachi Town. As they were going, neither of them said a word, too worried about Naruto's health to make small talk. As they were going, they heard the trees rustle. Hinata quickly pulled a hand back and was about to charge an attack, but she heard Neji's voice yell "Whoa! Whoa! Hold your fire, Ms. Itchy-Trigger-Finger."

Neji along with Lee both dropped down from the trees. Neji looked to Naruto and saw that he wasn't reacting. The fact that Naruto seemed to be sleeping caused Neji to drop his carefree attitude. He looked at Tenten and said "What happened to him?"

Tenten said "We don't know. Someone just threw something on him and he was knocked out."

Neji nodded and said "Hinata, did you look him over with your Byakugan?"

Hinata shook her head. "Not yet. We didn't have time since we had to get Naruto-kun out of there."

Neji nodded and grabbed Naruto, along with Lee helping him. Together, they were able to hold Naruto up better than the girls were. Neji said "Okay, let's get him to our new place."

It didn't need to be said that their old place had to be evacuated. When over fifty enemies attack your base, it's pretty obvious you might need to find a new place to live. Together, the four of them moved through the trees and to an old house on the outskirts of the city. The house seemed to be abandoned. It was in a relatively poor part of town, so not many people paid attention when they went by it. It was a great safe house, for now. As they piled into the old place, they saw that Kurenai and Shino were hard at work trying to make the place partly liveable. Kurenai heard them come into the room and saw them dragging Naruto. She muttered "Oh my god." She then spoke up by turning to Shino and saying "Shino! Clear a spot for Naruto."

As the others moved to put Naruto on the ground, Kurenai went and flipped on the lights. Luckily for them, the building still had electricity and indoor plumbing. As they cleared a spot, Kurenai saw the spots on his body and said "How did he get blood on him? I know that there are barely any weapons that can cut him."

Hinata said "Blood? That must be the stuff they dumped on him. As soon as they dumped it on him, he screamed and passed out."

Neji turned to Hinata and said "Hinata, maybe now is a good time to check his system with the Byakugan."

Hinata nodded and activated her kekkei genkai. As she did, she saw that he had small amounts of red chakra in his system. It was like the Kyuubi's chakra that she saw in his system before, but it was a different shade of red. She watched as the red chakra seemed to flood his entire system and move around randomly. It also seemed to be focusing itself at his stomach as if to fight off the effects of alcohol. She would've kept looking, but she heard Kurenai say "Look."

Hinata deactivated her Byakugan and looked at where Kurenai was pointing. Right before her eyes, she saw that the red highlights in Naruto's hair were starting to turn back into his regular black hair. She reactivated the Byakugan to see that it seemed that the red chakra was leaving his hair and seemed to mimic the actions of the rest of his system.

Hinata started to think to herself _'What could possibly be causing this? If Naruto-kun was hemophobic, his chakra wouldn't be flaring like this. But how could the chakra in his body cause his hair to change color like that? ...Maybe if I was talking to him instead of giving him the cold shoulder he would've told me?'_

As Hinata was contemplating what was happening in Naruto's body, Naruto was learning it also.

(8:30 P.M-In Naruto's Mind)

After thrashing around on the ground in pain, Naruto was transported to his mind. As he made it to his mind, Naruto stood up, wondering what the hell happened to him. As he took a step, he felt immense pain as if he was shocked by lightning. Naruto screamed in pain as he felt it. The pain caused him to drop to his knees. Naruto tried to jump up and move again, but the pain caused him to drop right back down. Naruto stumbled to his feet in spite of the pain and hobbled forward, his destination being his grandfather's cage.

20 agonizing, pain-filled minutes later, he made it there. As he reached the cage, Kurama was laughing at him while his mother instantly reached him and tried to help him. Kushina said "Naruto-kun? What did you get yourself into this time?"

Naruto said "I don't-AAAAH!" In the middle of his sentence, he was hit by a huge spasm of pain that made him drop to the ground and damn near pass out again. Kushina helped him up to his feet and changed the mindscape. She changed the mindscape to a regular park and sat her son on a nearby bench. As she sat him on there, she said "Now what happened?"

Naruto said "I was fighting Kazuya and then some guys dumped some stuff on me. I don't know what it was, but all of a sudden it was as if someone put me in a tub full of water and dropped an iron in it. I passed out and woke up here. Ever since I've been trying to get here, but the pain was stopping me."

Kushina said "The liquid. What color was it?"

Naruto said "It was a really deep red, like blood."

Kushina lowered her head, closed her eyes, and touched her forehead in thought. _'Blood red, causes him pain, made him pass out, what could it-'_ "OH MY GOD!"

Naruto jumped back from his mother's yell and said "Mom? What is it?"

Kushina didn't seem to hear him as she was still freaking out. She was damn near hyperventilating. "!"

Naruto fought through the pain coursing through his body and grabbed his mom and yelled "OKAA-CHAN!"

Kushina stopped hyperventilating, and Naruto said "Mom, calm down. What the hell is the problem?"

Kushina started sniffing and her eyes started tearing up. Eventually, she couldn't keep the tears back as she started bawling and hugging her son. Naruto could do nothing but hug her back. As he did, he heard a deep, rumbling laughter. He turned to see, no surprise, Kurama interrupting the moment. Kurama said **"Of all things to run into, he runs into lamb's blood? Wow, stupid human, when you fuck up, you fuck up big."**

Naruto turned to his mom and said "What is he talking about?"

Kushina said "That stuff that they dumped on you was Lamb's blood Naruto."

Naruto was revolted at the fact that animal blood was dumped onto him, but he fought through the revulsion and said "What's so special about Lamb's blood?"

Kushina said "Naruto, honey, the lamb is a very special creature. When demons used to visit this world, their favorite food to eat was the lamb. Eventually, Kami-sama saw this as a way to kill the demons, so she gave the blood of the lamb special properties. It was made to be addictive. Also, If it was drank by any person, it would act like a mild poison. 8 ounces of lamb blood in a human body would have the same effect as half a gallon of sake. But in the bodies of demons, it was even worse."

Naruto said "What does it do to demons?"

Kushina said "When it comes into contact with demon skin, it immediately nullifies the abilities of the demons. Also, the demon would be left without youki. If it stays on a demon's skin long enough, it starts to eat through it like acid. If ingested, it would feel like the demon ingested acid. The sheer pain from having that stuff in their body has caused many demons to go insane from the pain. Some of them died outright. These ailments would persist for as long as the lambs blood was in the body. When the demons realized what the lamb's blood was doing to them, they retreated to the Demon's Domain, the home of all demons, and decided to stay there."

Naruto looked at his mom in disbelief. He said "So you mean to tell me that as long as this lamb blood is in my body, I can't use any of my Youki?"

Kushina nodded and said "Yes, Naruto. So that means that until this lamb blood is gone, no demon form, no Youki, hell, I don't even think that you're partly demon anymore."

Naruto looked at his mom, in awe of the consequences of coming into contact with the substance. "Lamb's blood can do all of that? Unbelievable. ...But wait! If I'm basically 3 quarters human, that means that the enhanced healing that my demon blood gives me is gone."

Kushina nodded and said "Yep. Until this lamb's blood is gone, you need you take extra special care. While your skin is still tougher and your bones are denser than a regular human, you can be hurt easier than normal."

Naruto cursed at himself. His entire style of fighting was based on his invulnerability and healilng. He could easily take a stab wound in the gut if it meant landing a fatal strike to the neck or body. Yank out the weapon, and he would be healed in less than 12 hours. But without his healing, he couldn't just take strong hits to return stronger ones. He would have to start blocking and dodging more, otherwise he would be dead. He had to change the entire way he fought. And now that he thought about it, that wasn't exactly a bad idea. His style was based on taking hits to counter. But what would he do if he faced against someone whose healing factor was as good as his? What about if he fought someone with tougher skin or denser bones? When he fought Sasuke when Sasuke used his Super Saiyan-like transformation, Sasuke was much stronger than him. He could also take more strikes. So trying to take a hit from Sasuke could ruin him. As much as he liked to charge in guns blazing, his fighting style needed a much overdue change. And seeing as he was stuck in his mind for the forseeable future, he could think of no other time rather than now to do it.

Naruto nodded and said "I understand, Mom. So, can we change this place into a dojo?"

Kushina smirked and said "You planning on getting some training done while we're in here?"

Naruto mirrored his mom's smirk and said "Hell yeah."

Kushina's mouth quickly changed from a smirk to a scowl as she punched Naruto across the top of the head and said "YOU DO NOT USE THAT LANGUAGE IN FRONT OF ME, YOUNG MAN!"

(12:30 A.M-JuuHachi Town)

4 hours after their fight with Kazuya ended, Hinata was standing guard outside the shack. She volunteered to keep watch because she couldn't sleep with Naruto knocked out. She wanted to be there for him when he finally woke up. _'If he wakes up. No way, I can't think like that. He'll wake up, definitely.'_

But Hinata didn't know if she was stating a fact, or trying to convince herself of that.

As she was keeping watch, Lee showed up behind her and tapped her on the shoulder. Surprisingly, he was quiet and not overly loud. "Hinata-chan, it is my turn to keep watch. I suggest you get some rest."

Hinata stood up and said "Thank you Lee."

As she was turning to go back into the shack, Lee said "Hinata-chan? Don't worry. Naruto-kun is a fighter. He fought Sasuke with a stab wound in his leg. He won't let something like a virus kill him."

Hinata nodded and said "Thanks again, Lee."

Lee gave Hinata a wide smile, oddly causing moonlight to glint off his teeth. "Anytime, Hinata-chan."

Hinata went back into the room where Naruto was so that she could rest by him in case he needed anything throughout the night. As the night went by, Naruto started thrashing and screaming at random intervals. His skin started losing it's color, becoming more and more pale. It seemed to be getting worse, but Hinata kept hope. As she was going into the room, she saw Tenten there holding Naruto's hand and crying. Seeing this, Hinata was pissed. But she was also immensely tired, so instead, she decided to observe rather than cause a scene.

As Tenten was holding onto Naruto's hand, she said "Please come back to me Naruto-kun. Please. I-I-I know that we've only known each other for two months, but you've made such a huge impact on my life. Ever since you walked into my uncle's shop, you've brightened up my life. You've added something to it that I've always needed but never known about. And now that I have it, ...I don't want to ever let it go. I know that you might not feel the same way about me as I feel about you, but please come back. If not to be with me, then just to be in my life. What you added to my life, and what you mean to me, I can't go on without it. If you don't want to be with me, I understand. I just want you to be a part of my life. ...I don't know how you did it, but (sniff) you became the most important person to me in just a few months. I can't imagine a life without you and I don't want to, Naruto-kun. So please. For the love of God, come back to me."

At that point, the tears, sadness, and frustration that Tenten was holding back let go. She started crying buckets and threw her head into Naruto's chest while he was still thrashing. Watching all of this, Hinata was ...shocked! She couldn't believe it. Naruto had made such an impact on Tenten and he had only known her for a short amount of time. Tenten was crying over Naruto's comatose body. She didn't even care if he returned her feelings at that point, she just wanted to be in his life. All this time, Hinata thought that Tenten just wanted to take Naruto from her because of some shallow reason. But now, there was no denying it. Tenten had real feelings for Naruto, just like she has. Tenten wanted Naruto because he became a part of her life. She wanted him because she had very strong feelings for him. She wanted him...for all the same reasons that Hinata did. _'She's just like I was when I first met him. Have I been hating her for falling for the same thing I did? Naru-kun has this type of... aura. I just can't describe it, but he just attracts people to him. Something about him drew me in, and now it's drawing her too. If I try to push her away now, I'll just be a hypocrite. Damnit, what do I do?'_

"Having some trouble, Hinata-chan?"

Hinata jumped in the air in surprise, then turned around to see Neji. She said "Neji-kun, what are you doing here?"

Neji said "Well, Tenten's crying woke me up. I came here to try and lessen her discomfort. But it seems that you have as much discomfort as she does."

Hinata looked around to see that no one was listening. Then, she turned to Neji and said "Tenten has a big crush on Naruto."

"Tell me something I don't know."

"She likes him for the exact same reasons that I do. Naruto just has this way with people that makes them like him. Hell, he could probably spend an hour in a room with Orochimaru and they'd come out as best friends. How can I try to force her away from Naruto when she was exactly like I was when I first had feelings for him?"

Neji smirked as he listened to his psuedo little sister spill her guts about her feelings. The answer to that problem was relatively obvious. She just wasn't thinking about it correctly. Neji, still smirking, said "Who says you have to push her away?"

To Neji's weird answer, Hinata could only say "What?"

Neji, still smirking, said "I tried hinting at this to Tenten, but she didn't take the bait. So I guess I'll just say it outright. There's no law against Naruto being with two women."

Again, Hinata could only say "What?"

Neji said "There's no law against dating two people at once. It doesn't matter if his feelings for Tenten are weak, or if Tenten and Naruto will get married one day, that still doesn't mean he can't marry you too."

Hinata said "But how? There's no way marrying more than one person is legal."

Neji smiled and said "It is legal. Everyone just acts like it's illegal because they think it's morally wrong to marry more than one person. But technically, it was never written into law. So that means that polygamy is only considered deviant behavior, not criminal behavior."

Hinata looked at Neji with confusion, wonder, and a small amount of hope. She said "So you mean that no matter what his feelings for Tenten are, we could still be together?"

Neji chuckled at the hope in Hinata's voice. He said "Yes, Imouto. Naruto could fall in love with 10 women and marry them all, and he could still be with you."

Hinata said "But won't people look down on us for it?"

Neji looked at Hinata with disbelief. _'I can't believe she just said that.'_

Neji said "Hinata, your boyfriend is the container of the Kyuubi no Kitsune, beat out the village's Golden Boy for the Rookie of the Year title, and frequently kicks the Golden Boy's ass. It's pretty obvious that people will look down on you already. The question you have to ask yourself is, do you love Naruto enough to put up with all of it?"

Hinata had nothing to say at Neji's statement as she started piecing it together in her mind. Neji said "I can see that I've said enough. For now, I think I'll try and get some more sleep. You should too."

Neji then turned around and went back in his room, leaving Hinata along in the hallway. She looked in the door to see that Tenten was still there, crying her eyes out. Hinata walked up to Naruto and grabbed onto his other hand, not disturbing Tenten. Hinata saw the way Tenten was acting and knew that she and Naruto would have a big decision to make in the future. Hinata just pulled Naruto's hand up to her heart and squeezed his hand harder, hoping that he would be able to draw strength from her this time instead of the opposite.

(With Naruto)

As Naruto was sparring against his mom in his mindscape, he still felt he pain of the lambs blood coursing through his veins. Every move he made was like he had a 10 ton weight tied to each limb. Also, the random spasms of pain that he felt didn't seem to be going away any time soon. But when one of the spasms hit him, it surprisingly didn't feel as painful as it did before. And even though there was no particular explanation for it, he would swear to the end of his days that he heard Hinata and Tenten's voices saying _"Please come back to me, Naruto-kun."_

Naruto stopped in his sparring match and looked skyward. Even though above him was nothing but an endless white void, he almost felt like he was looking the two women in the eye. He thought _'Don't worry Hina-chan. I told you before that there wasn't a force in existence that would keep us apart, and I meant it. Ten-chan, even though I don't feel for you the same that I feel for Hina-chan, I will still come back to you. That's a promise of a lifetime.'_

Naruto turned to his mom and started throwing more punches at her, more determined than ever to change his fighting style.

That's what he and his mom did for the next 20 hours. From 8:30 P.M to 8:30 P.M the next day, they were constantly fighting, helping Naruto get used to fighting in his new style. While they hadn't exactly succeeded, they had made much progress. Now, Naruto was more equipped to fighting enemies who were on the same level of strength as he was.

What was surprising was that, as time went on, it seemed that the spasms started becoming less and less frequent. By the time he ended training with his mom, he had completely stopped them. After their training session, Kushina closed her eyes and mentally did a check on Naruto's body. It seemed that a lot of the lambs blood that landed on his body had been washed away. That must've helped immensely.

At first, Naruto wondered why demons didn't just take a shower after coming into contact with lamb's blood, but then he realized something. He was only half-demon, and he was put in a coma from the amount that was splashed on his body and the small amount that he swallowed. Imagine the effects it had on a full demon. They wouldn't be able to crawl somewhere to clean themselves, and the other demons wouldn't help for fear of getting it on them. Naruto started thanking Kami that he had just great friends who took great care of him. _'It's ironic.'_ thought Naruto. _'Demons damn near die because of lamb's blood. They always look at humans as weaker than or beneath them. Yet if they swallowed their pride and accepted a human's help, so many of them wouldn't have died from coming into contact with lamb's blood.'_

While Naruto was contemplating the curses of the demon's hubris, Kushina said "Naruto, I think your body has started to shake off the effects of the lamb's blood. You got off easy this time, Naruto-kun, be careful next time."

Naruto nodded and said "I will Okaa-chan."

Naruto then started to fade from his position.

(8:30 P.M-Day after blood landed on Naruto-JuuHachi Town)

Hinata and Tenten both stayed near Naruto, hoping that he would wake up soon. Throughout the night, things got worse. His skin became more and more gray, and he started thrashing more and more. With his condition getting worse, everyone was terrified about it. Could this be the end of Naruto? While everyone else was grieving, Tenten had an idea. It all started when he came into contact with the blood. Maybe taking it away would help him out of it. So at noon, everyone helped in undressing Naruto and cleaning off the lamb's blood. While Tenten and Hinata probably wouldn't be able to look Naruto in the eye for a week, almost immediately his condition started taking a turn for the better. As soon as they were finished washing the blood off of him, he started thrashing in his sleep less. The screams of pain started to lower to a small groan, which was gone 4 hours later. His skin started changing from it's gray state to a pale version of Naruto's regular skin color. By 6 P.M, his skin was back to normal. It seemed that for now, he was just sleeping off the pain.

By 8:30, Tenten and Hinata were still by Naruto's side. But the fight last night, along with worrying over Naruto had taken it's toll on them. They were both extremely tired, and even though they were trying to fight it, they both fell asleep. And that's the situation Naruto woke up to.

Naruto groaned when he woke up, then opened his eyes to see a bright light shining over his head. He tried to sit up, but he felt a weight on his chest. Looking down, he saw Hinata sleeping on his chest, and right over her head, one of the buns that Tenten kept her hair in. Naruto started shaking the girls, trying to wake them, but they were both stubborn. So sadly, Naruto was stuck there. Eventually Neji walked into the room and saw Naruto's predicament. He started chuckling. Naruto just glared at him and said "Will you just shut up and help me already?"

Neji's chuckling died off and he said "Fine, I will. Don't get your panties in a twist."

Neji cupped his mouth and said outloud "HINATA, TENTEN, NARUTO'S SUNBATHING NUDE!"

Immediately, both girls shot up and shouted "Where?"

Neji and Naruto both started laughing at the two girls. The girls glared at Neji for saying that, until they heard Naruto chuckling. They both yelled out "Naruto!" and started hugging him for dear life. As Naruto sat up, he saw that he was missing his clothes. He said "Uum, what happened to my clothes?"

An hour, and some intense blushing later, they were able to get Naruto back in his regular clothes. After they did, the girls started to catch Naruto up on what he missed. After hearing what happened, Naruto said "Well, why are we wasting time here? Let's go out there and find these bastards."

Naruto tried to get up, but both Tenten and Hinata pushed him down. Tenten said "Naruto-kun, you're not fully okay yet. You were almost in a coma. You need to rest more."

Naruto said "Forgive me if I'm wrong, Tenten-chan, but I just got done resting for 24 hours straight. Now I wanna go kick some ass."

Naruto tried to move, but Tenten pushed him back down. She looked him in his eye and said "Naruto, you're not leaving this bed."

Looking in her eyes, Naruto saw something that scared the hell out of him. He obediently nodded his head and laid back down. Tenten then smiled and said "Good."

Hinata muttered "Good one."

Tenten was oddly shocked. Not at the compliment, but at who it came from. She slowly said "Thank you."

The girls spent the rest of the night talking to Naruto and each other. Around 12:30, the girls got sleepy. Not long after, they were fast asleep. Noticing that, Naruto thought _'Now it's time for me to get back out there and train.'_

Naruto slipped out of his bed, making sure that the girls weren't disturbed in any way. As he slipped out, he started going to a random tree and started punching and kicking it. Naruto tested his speed, strength, agility, endurance, everything he could think of. His results weren't good. Naruto had easily lost about half of his power. His punches didn't carry the same power they used to. He couldn't move as fast as before. It was like he became a poor man's version of himself.

After a half hour of testing himself in his regular form, Naruto called on the power of Super Saiyan. As he was calling up the power, he found that he had to put a lot more effort into calling upon it than he did before. Even with the power and the amazing boost it offered, it couldn't make up for the damage that the lamb's blood did to him.

Naruto also tried going Super Saiyan 2. To start off, Naruto powered up in Super Saiyan. But after raising his power, he reached a point that he couldn't pass. Naruto gritted his teeth and tried harder to raise power, but it seemed that it wasn't working. Naruto screamed and put all his effort into it, but as he did, he felt the power of Super Saiyan 2 flood his body, and he screamed out, this time in pain, and dropped back to his normal form. _'This is worse than I thought.'_

It seemed that, like the original Super Saiyan transformation, Super Saiyan 2 gave him a lot more power. But just like Super Saiyan, if he flooded his body with too much power, the power would start to tear at his body apart. His demonic healing helped by repairing some part of the damage. And since the damage was being repaired, he could stay transformed longer. Without his demonic healing, he could barely stay transformed in Super Saiyan, let alone Super Saiyan 2.

After another half hour of fighting, Naruto decided to go to their hiding place. As he reached there, he heard his stomach growl. Deciding to feed the black hole he called a stomach, Naruto opened the refrigerator to see that there was nothing there. _'Damnit, what am I supposed to do? I'm hungry as hell but there's no food here. ...Maybe there's some store open for me to get something.'_

Deciding to go that route, Naruto flew around JuuHachi Town, looking for either open stores or stores that looked like their owners were loaded. If worst came, he would just decide to just take some food from the store. These bastards were falsely accusing him and his friends of a crime they didn't commit. The least they could do was look the other way when he and his friends did what they needed to do to survive.

Naruto landed near a reasonably well off store. It seemed to be very upscale, and it was gigantic. Naruto thought _'In a store like this, I'm pretty sure they won't miss a little bit of food.'_

Naruto took flight and circled the building, looking for a way in. As he was doing that, he spotted something that piqued his interest. There was a member of the Privaron there looking at the store too. At first, Naruto thought that it was because the Privaron member was being paid by the owner of the store to watch the place, but then he spotted the bag near the gangbanger. Near the Privaron member was a bag that Naruto could tell, even from his distance, was filled to the brim with crowbars, hammers, bricks, everything needed to cause damage. _'Oh, I get it. He's gonna destroy the store to weasel protection money out of the owner. That makes this easier. I can knock him out, get the food, and blame the rest on him.'_

As he was about to put this plan into action, he heard a voice say _"Naruto-chan, you're not looking at the big picture here."_

_'What do you mean, mom?'_

_"I mean that for the past couple days your friends have been looking for a Privaron member to interrogate for info. Now that you have one in your sights whose prime for the taking, you want to frame him for stealing some food?"_

Naruto sheepishly thought back _'Oh, right. I forgot.'_

_"What would you do without me?"_

_'Have one less annoying voice in my head.'_

_"HEY!"_

Naruto flew down and touched down right behind the Privaron member. He grabbed the guy by the head, and leaned him back to send his skull on a collision course with the ground. The guy dropped to the ground without a struggle. Naruto grabbed him and took off, flying towards his group's location. As he landed, he saw that everyone was looking at him as he returned. Naruto said "Uum, ...Hey guys, did I miss something?"

Tenten came forward and punched him in the head. She said "Yeah. You missed the fact that you just came out of a coma and need to rest. What were you thinking going out there and scaring us half to death?"

Naruto said "I'm sorry, Tenten-chan. But I got something here to make up for it."

Hinata said "Naruto-kun, who is that?"

Naruto dropped the guy he was holding and bopped him across the head. He said "This little bastard here is a member of the Privaron. And now, we have an informant."

Tenten and Hinata, both embarrassed, said "Oh."

Neji grabbed the guy from Naruto and said "Let's get him inside before someone sees him."

Naruto and the others wasted no time getting the man into the building. After getting the man strapped in, Naruto decided to wake the man up with a backhand across the face. The man quickly woke up and looked around. He said "Where am I?"

Naruto said "It doesn't matter where you're at. You're here to answer our questions. Now, if you answer them, we won't have to hurt you."

The man looked Naruto right in th eye and said "Fuck you."

Naruto said "Fine then. I didn't want to do this, but you're forcing me to. Kurenai-sensei?"

Kurenai nodded and started doing handseals. As she finished, she muttered "Hell Viewing Jutsu."

The man's eyes became glassy as if he was daydreaming. The muscles on his face started to relax, making the man look serene and happy. After a second though, that carefree look was replaced with a terror-filled one. The man started screaming, and after 10 seconds of the man screaming, Kurenai released the Jutsu. The man came out of the vision gasping for air and sweating. There was a faint aroma of urine in the room also. Naruto said "Do you remember what just happened?"

At the man's nod, Naruto said "I'll send you back there if you don't answer our questions. Where is Rodorigo Borruja?"

The man said "I-I-I can't tell you. They'll kill me if I tell you."

Naruto put his hand next to the man's face and charged up a Demon's Rage attack. He said "I'll kill you right now if you don't."

The man screamed "OKAY OKAY OKAY! JUST DON'T HURT ME!"

Naruto dispelled his Demon's Rage attack and said "Okay. Now tell us where Rodorigo Borruja is."

The man said "About 10 miles south of JuuHachi Town is a small village. He's been hiding out there. He's paying the people of the village to not tell the cops."

Naruto nodded, and Neji walked up and said "What about those three ninja that Borruja had attack us?"

The guy said "They just showed up one day. Apparently Borruja and that black haired one knew each other from somewhere. Those three were looking for some place to stay and some work, so Borruja has had them helping us. They even helped us learn to use our energy. I think they called it catra-"

Naruto said "It's called 'chakra' you dumbass. Seriously, what kind of idiot doesn't know that."

The man glared at Naruto, before Naruto put his hand up and focused energy into it, causing it to glow. The guy quickly stopped glaring and said "Moving on. They helped teach us a few ninja moves and helped us kick the other ninja out of town."

Neji said "We know that you need to take a tattoo to join the gang. How do you hide yours?"

The man said "When we first got the tattoo, it became too easy to tell members from non-members. But then those three ninja came and helped us. They took some ink, drew some weird symbol over the tattoo, and then 'POOF', the tattoo was gone. And then, just to help with it, they put some makeup over it too."

Neji thought _'Some weird symbol that makes something disappear. Sounds like a Genjutsu seal to me.'_

Neji quickly went to the bathroom and returned with a wet rag. He rubbed the man's upper arm where the tattoo was supposed to be, and saw some substance that matched the man's skin color come off. After wiping the spot for a bit, Neji put his finger to where he thought the seal was, and muttered "Release."

As he did, he broke through the Genjutsu seal and saw the seal show up. Around the tattoo was a circle of small symbols that Neji couldn't begin to describe. Neji said "The Genjutsu seal around the tattoo was what was keeping the mayor from seeing it. The makeup on the arm made it so that even if they died, it wouldn't show up unless someone washed the makeup away."

Naruto said "Pretty good plan. But I have another question. What kind of protections does Borruja have at his hideout?"

The guy said "He has about 30 people there at all times. Also, he has those three ninja there. They're almost never away from him. As a matter of fact, I think they run the group more than he does. They're always talking him into doing things and they're the ones who pass the orders to us. It's like he's their cover."

Naruto nodded, then quickly kicked the guy in the jaw. The guy passed out, and Naruto turned to the others in the room and said "Well guys, we just found out where Rodorigo is. Now we need an attack plan."


	12. Way of the Saiyan Warrior

In Rodorigo's base, Kazuya was walking around, keeping a headcount of everyone he saw. As he finished his headcount, he realized something. There was one person missing. Kazuya rushed to the nearest member and said "Where's Kebin-san?"

The guy shook his head and said "I have no idea."

Kazuya said "Has anyone seen Kebin-san?"

Beside him, he heard someone say "I told him to go put in some work at Makoto's shop on Kobayashi Avenue."

Turning to where the voice came from, Kazuya saw a slightly portly man there. The guy was wearing a maroon red robe with a hood on it. The robe had a golden outline and gold designs on it. He had gray hair and a gray moustache and beard. Kazuya said "Who else went with him?"

The man said "I told him to go alone."

Kazuya said "Rodorigo, why the hell would you do that?"

Internally, Kazuya thought _'Damnit! Of all the times for this weakling to grow a backbone.'_

Rodorigo Borruja said "Because we couldn't spare the people. Besides, you said it yourself. The only competition that we have is that group of ninja in JuuHachi Town, and now that you've taken out their strongest Jounin and their powerhouse of a Genin, they're weaklings. What's the worse that could happen?"

* * *

(Elsewhere)

At the gang's new base, Kurenai was grilling their new informant for more information. As she started pumping the info out of him like a hose, Naruto said "Wait a minute, Kurenai-sensei. Why don't we get the mayor to listen to him? Maybe if the mayor listens to him, he'll ease up on us and we can walk around town again."

Kurenai said "How do you suppose we get the mayor to hear him? I mean, we can't exactly kidnap the mayor and bring him here, can we?"

Naruto shrugged and said "Why not. It'll probably bring a little spice to this neighborhood."

Neji slapped Naruto in the back of the head and said "Naruto, we're not kidnapping the mayor. How about we do this instead?"

With that, Neji told the others about his plan of getting the mayor to hear their side of the story.

After hearing it, Kurenai said "It does sound reasonable, if a little inhumane."

Shino, who was silently listening in on their conversation, said "With all due respect, Kurenai-sensei, these guys terrorize neighborhoods and vandalize property for a living. I think we can overlook the inhumane factor just a bit."

Naruto said "I'm on board with it."

Kurenai said "Fine then, let's do it."

* * *

(The next day)

The next day, the mayor was working in his office. As mayor, he had to deal with many things. The newest of which started the day the ninja arrived in his home village. After the KuroiGetsu hotel was burned down, they were only wanted for questioning. But it's been over two days since he made a public announcement that the ninja were wanted for questioning. They still hadn't shown up. The mayor was being backed into a corner. He wanted the truth to be known, but the more outspoken members of City Council were on his ass to do something more about the ninja. Even though he wanted to give them more time, the mayor of JuuHachi Town knew that he couldn't keep going along with this.

So with a heavy heart, he was looking at the arrest warrants for the Konohagakure ninja. The only thing missing from making them official was his signature, which he was about to put on there. As he picked up his pen, he heard a knock come from his door. The mayor sighed, relieved that something happened to break the tension. He said "Enter."

Two burly men entered holding a big box in between them. As they dropped the box off, they each left. While they were going, the mayor said "Wait a minute. What about me signing-" The mayor's statement was interrupted by the sound of the door closing. They didn't make him sign for this package. That's weird. Every package was supposed to be signed over, but they just forgot it. The mayor just put it out of his mind and spent the next hour or so debating whether or not he should sign those papers. Before he could sign them though, he heard something shuffling. Looking around, he saw nothing. Turning back to his work, he heard another rumbling.

The mayor looked at the box, the origin of the sound. Opening the box, imagine his surprise to see that it was a member of the Privaron who was wrapped up in tape. The mayor looked on the flaps of the box and saw a small note written in beautiful penmanship.

The note said _'There's a Genjutsu seal on his right forearm that hides his Privaron mark. Grill him, and you'll find out a lot of information._

_Signed, Your friendly neighborhood ninja!'_

The mayor couldn't believe his eyes as he saw the Privaron member struggle against his bindings. They had just been handed an informant on the Privaron, and the mayor wasn't about to waste it. He had his secretary call the chief of police and the best interrogators in their city.

* * *

(A few hours later)

After a few hours of constantly drilling the Privaron member, the Mayor of JuuHachi town decided to call a town meeting. The tone that he used to tell his secretary told her that the mayor meant business. She quickly put their best heralds on the job spreading the word about the speech. As word spread about the meeting, it reached the Privaron's spies in the village, and they passed the message on. But instead of the message going to Rodorigo, it went to Kazuya. Kazuya quickly put on a big black trench coat with the collar pulled up and a black hat to cover as much of his face as he could. After putting on a disguise, he quickly raced over to where the speech would be given.

As everyone gathered around, the mayor walked up to the podium and said "Thank you all for coming out so quickly. There's been a major break in the KuroiGetsu hotel case. This morning, a person was delivered to my office in a cardboard box. I suspected that he was a member of the Privaron, and after interrogating him for a few hours, me and Police Chief Minamoto-san have discovered quite a few things. For example, the Privaron were the ones behind the destruction of the KuroiGetsu hotel. The member we interrogated said that one of their members committed the act. Because of this, I am ordering the wanted posters of the Leaf nin taken down, effective immediately. Also, the informant wouldn't tell me how, but he said him and his group were taught ninja techniques. Because of this, I am advising everyone not to try and take on the Privaron alone. That is all."

After the mayor ended his speech, Kazuya cursed. _'What's the worst that could happen? That buffoon! Now all the hard work we put into isolating this town from the Daimyo's lapdogs has been undone. I swear the next chance I get, I'm killing that fatass Borruja.'_

Kazuya disappeared in a blur, racing towards Borruja's estate. As he was moving, he didn't realize that a certain quarter-Saiyan was watching him from the skies. Naruto saw Kazuya moving and powered up to follow him. After about an hour of flying after the man, Naruto saw in the distance that there was a village standing there. Right in the middle was a big house like a mansion that was surrounded by 15 people all dressed like the Privaron. Naruto knew that he had just struck paydirt. Naruto spent the next half hour scoping out the village. It seemed that they had no way of checking who came in and out, so getting into the village would be a cinch. The wall surrounding Borruja's mansion didn't seem too strong. Naruto could easily blow through it. As a group of them were keeping the Privaron busy, the others could rush in and grab Borruja. And hopefully take out Kazuya and the other two Stooges while they're at it.

Naruto powered up and flew back to JuuHachi Town at his fastest. When he descended next to their hideout, he saw that Shino was waiting for him. Shino said "How did the meeting go, Naruto?"

Naruto said "Posters are taken down. Morale has changed. We are officially off the hook. Also, I saw that bastard Kazuya in the audience. I followed him to the village where Borruja is hiding. The guys' info checks out."

Shino said "Good. The information you gathered can do wonders for us planning our siege of the place."

Naruto nodded and went into the building. After helping Neji drop off the informant, Naruto sent a Kage Bunshin to go and scour the town to see what the grapevine said about the situation. After finding out that there was a town meeting, Kurenai ordered him to go and stay out of sight. Luckily for Naruto, no one decided to gaze at the clouds at that exact moment.

Naruto walked into one of the rooms of the house and saw Kurenai and Neji both planning their attack on the place. Naruto decided to help them by providing his own input on it.

* * *

As night fell on the small village that Rodorigo had paid off, he was taking a nighttime stroll around his property. Kazuya had made a giant fuss about him going out, but Rodorigo snapped at him and left anyway. So what if their scheme to get people to mistrust the Konoha ninja failed? This was just one town in an entire country. As a matter of fact, this was a no-name town. For Kami's sake, the town's name is a number! They could easily go to any other town in Hi no Kuni and try this again. After getting the people there to mistrust the Konoha ninja, that would leave the town for their taking.

_'That worrisome Kazuya is throwing a bitch fit over nothing! So what if the plan failed here, we can start again. I bet in a month, this will all just be water under the bridge.'_

Rodorigo was the last one to expect what happened next.

As he was taking his stroll, he heard a loud explosion. Looking to where it came from, he saw smoke coming up from the opposite side of the compound. Rodorigo quickly knew that something was wrong, so he quickly ran towards the compound. As he made it in, he heard someone scream. Knowing that he didn't want to become within 100 feet of whatever it was, he raced towards the most secure room of the facility at the very top. Had he stayed, he'd have seen an ebony-haired beauty standing in the shadows, encased in a Genjutsu.

* * *

(A few minutes earlier)

The group sans Kurenai were all waiting by the wall for the signal. Naruto looked at the sky to see the position of the moon. He waited until,...there! The moon's position signaling that it was 10 P.M at night. Naruto looked to the others waiting with him and they all got ready. Naruto and Hinata both held their right arms out fully extended. They moved their hand so their palm was facing the wall and started to gather energy. Almost immediately, a black aura started to surround their palms. The aura started to condense until it was at the center of their palms, and started to lift off to form a small black ball of energy. The ball started to expand in size, changing from the size of a pea to the size of a basketball. As if they could read each other's minds, they both simultaneously yelled out "Spirit Shot!"

They both thrusted their palms forward, shooting off the blasts of energy. As she watched them work, Tenten couldn't help but feel different. After Naruto and Hinata made up, they were both acting as if they were the same being. They acted as one, especially when it came to fighting. When she saw them like this, Tenten couldn't help but feel...jealous. She wanted that exact same relationship with Naruto. But those two acted like they were two peas in a pod. Was there enough room in their relationship for another? Was there enough room in Naruto's heart for another? The orbs impacting with the wall, destroying it like it was paper mache tore the weapons mistress from her thoughts. She steeled herself and distanced her psyche from her emotions briefly to get through the fight. As the smoke from the explosions rose, the entire group charged in.

Naruto charged in the smoke determined to end this mission. It was like a bittersweet nightmare for him. While he did make up with his girlfriend and find out the limits of his demonic form, he also was brought closer to death than he ever was before. He just wanted this damn thing to be over with so that he could get to healing. Even worse, this would be the first test of his new fighting style. He had to make sure that he didn't fall back into his old habits. The only thing he could do was charge in and hope he didn't go out in any type of blaze, even glory. But knowing him and his previous actions, he would more than likely go out in a blaze of foolishness.

As they charged in, the ninja all spread out around the courtyard. As they did, the Privaron, like moths to a flame, charged after them. As the Privaron moved around, the group of ninja all started attacking. Hinata hopped to the top of a wall and formed her bow of energy. She yelled out "Spirit Arrow!" and started shooting off arrow after arrow, cutting down the numbers of Privaron.

As they started their attack, Tenten did the exact same thing. She hopped up to Hinata's side and started to provide long range support for her fellow Genin. While they were taking out enemies from afar, both girls spared a small smile to the other one. Ever since Naruto's near death experience, they both had started to become cordial to each other. They weren't exactly BFF's, but they at least weren't reaching for kunai at the sight of the other. They both knew that they had to have a big talk soon, and that that talk would involve Naruto, but until that talk happened, they both were trying to ignore it.

As soon as he reached his position, Naruto focused his reiki to his hand. As he did, a generic sword made out of reiki formed. While Naruto had no access to his demonic form or his youki, that still didn't mean that he didn't have access to his reiki in his human form. Naruto charged forward and met the kunai swing of a Privaron member. Naruto saw the man pull his kunai back for another slice, and Naruto ducked. As he ducked, Naruto buried the sword into the man's stomach. As the blade entered the man's stomach, Naruto dispelled the blade and formed another one. While it cost more energy since he had to make another one, it was much less time consuming than trying to yank it out of the man's gut. Also, since the blade dissipated, there was nothing stopping the man's blood from spilling onto the floor. Naruto continued to slice through the members of the Privaron, but at nowhere near the level of speed he usually would.

Even though he was going slower, he was still killing them, which reminded Naruto of one of the many benefits of being the scion of two groups of beings who were bred to fight and kill. He had an instinctive desensitivity to killing. Now that's not to say that he won't feel _anything_, he just won't become a sniffling wreck at the act. It didn't hurt that he was raised in a community where fighting, killing, and betrayal was a daily occurrence, and war was a once-a-decade occurrence. With things like that going on, you kinda got used to it after a while. Also, Naruto really didn't give a flying fuck about these Privaron members. They all decided to rob and terrorize a town to make a quick buck. He felt they deserved to die. Because of these things, Naruto wouldn't be losing any sleep over killing them.

As they were taking out the people in the courtyard, they heard Kurenai's voice over their radios. "Guys, Borruja just went into the tower."

Naruto smirked. _'Just like we thought he would.'_ The plan was right on the money. They would track Borruja until he was on the opposite side of the building from their entrance. The sound of the battle would send him running with his tail in between his legs. Of course, he would run to the strongest members of his group, which were the ones that the group were looking for. They would track Borruja to the escaped felons and arrest them all at the same time. "Okay guys, start the plan."

Naruto jumped to the bottom of the wall that Tenten and Hinata were perched on. As they stood up there, the others started to draw the other Privaron members towards them. Naruto spread his feet and crouched down. He moved his hands towards his chest and acted as if he was holding a basketball in front of his chest. As Naruto did this, a red ball of energy started to form in between his hands. Naruto felt the ball get bigger and bigger, until it filled the space in between his hands. As he finished gathering up the energy, Naruto yelled out "Destruction Wave!"

As soon as he uttered the first syllable in the word 'Destruction', Lee, Neji, and Shino all jumped away, barely avoiding the red ball of energy as it sailed forward and crashed into the gang members. As he explosion occurred, a huge smokescreen shot up, forcing both sides to halt. As the smoke cleared, Naruto and Hinata were both missing. But the Privaron didn't have time to ponder this as Team Gai plus Shino all started to attack with wild abandon.

As the Genin attacked, the Privaron didn't know that the door to the compound was open.

* * *

(Inside the Building)

As Naruto and Hinata entered the building, they both started looking around for Borruja, but they couldn't find him. Naruto and Hinata found the steps and started running up them, but they couldn't find Borruja. As they were running around, Naruto stopped and said "Wait Hinata! Why are we tiring ourselves out running?"

Hinata said "How else will we get Borruja? Flying?"

Naruto looked at her and said "Yeah."

Hinata blinked, and smacked herself in the forehead. She said "Oh Kami-sama, Naruto-kun. I'm spending too much time with you. I'm becoming as big a baka as you."

Naruto said "HEY!"

Hinata just chuckled at him and took off, flying up the steps. Naruto was a half-step behind her as they flew to the top of the stairs and saw a door closing. Naruto rushed to the door and broke it down. As he went in, he saw Borruja on the ground, huffing and puffing. Naruto walked in with Hinata behind him. He said "Mr. Borruja. You have some prison time to do."

Rodorigo said "I don't think so, Konoha scum."

Naruto said "And just how will you stop us?"

A voice from beside Naruto said "He won't."

Naruto looked over there, and saw Kazuya dashing towards him, his sword already in mid swing. Naruto jumped forward to dodge, and as he landed, he had to jump back from Miroku dropping down from the ceiling. As Naruto landed from his jump, he felt arms from behind him envelop him. He felt his head rest on something soft, and heard a woman's voice in his ear say "So, Naru-koi, we meet again."

Naruto looked up, and saw the sweet, smiling, and enticing face of Sakuya looking down at him. The rational side of the boy's brain was telling him to get away from her, but as stated before, Naruto is not just a boy, he's a hormonal teenager. And while Naruto could usually keep that hormonal teenager part of him suppressed, looking into Sakuya's amethyst eyes just stirred up his hormones and kicked his horniness up 200 percent. Naruto barely beat out his horny side and hopped away from her to land by the side of a livid Hinata. As he landed, Naruto grabbed a hold of Hinata and kissed her with a level of passion that rivaled their first kiss as a couple. Luckily, the feel of Hinata's body pressed against his own and the feel of her lips on his caused him to forget about Sakuya. But still, he was chanting a mantra in his brain. _'I love my girlfriend, I love my girlfriend, I love my girlfriend,...'_

As they were kissing, Miroku let loose a long whistle at the steaming lip-lock. Kazuya thought _'Shame that thing's gotta die. I admit, they make a cute couple.'_

Sakuya was disgusted at the kiss and muttered "Get a room." And as an afterthought, she muttered "Then kick her out and invite me in."

As his kiss with Hinata ended, Naruto took in a deep breath, exhaled, and said "Okay, I'm ready to go."

Hinata, still dazed from the kiss, said "Go where?"

Naruto turned to see Hinata with her mouth open, drooling a bit, and swirls in her eyes with her head bobbing to the left and right. Naruto shook her a bit so that she could regain her bearings, then faced the foursome of enemies. Naruto said "Hinata, get Sakuya and keep an eye on Rodorigo. You see an opportunity to get him out of here, you take it."

She said "Hai" and charged the only other woman in the room. Naruto took off after the two warriors. As he reached them, he had to hop back a little bit to avoid the sword of Kazuya, then he had to roll to the left to dodge Miroku's dagger. Naruto saw that they were both armed, so he reached back and grabbed his own sword. Naruto drew his sword and held it in front of him in a defensive stance. As he did, he realized that he hadn't applied this new battle philosophy of his to his Kenjutsu style. Oh man, he had a lot of work to do.

Naruto couldn't do the work now though, as he had to block a strike from Kazuya. As he blocked the strike, he saw Miroku, not a second later, rush up to him and aim the dagger at his throat. Naruto leaned back to avoid the attack, then headbutted Miroku in his nose, causing him to back up. _'That'll impair his fighting a bit in the long run.'_ But whether Naruto would make it to see the long run was still up for debate.

Naruto blocked another strike from Kazuya, but couldn't block Miroku's dagger. The dagger sliced into his leg, but thankfully not that deep. Naruto would've attacked Miroku, but Kazuya pulled his sword back and tried to hit Naruto. Naruto backed up to avoid the strike, and then had to back up more to avoid Miroku's attack. The two escaped convicts kept up the attacks, forcing Naruto back further. As Naruto started backing up, he eventually hit the wall. He realized he could back up no more and panicked.

Kazuya took advantage of that moment by rushing forward, turning his broadsword on its side, and bashing it's flat edge into Naruto's stomach. Naruto's eyes widened as he felt the attack hit him in the chest. He felt a bit of blood erupt from his mouth and splash on the floor. The attack hurt like hell! He damn near voided his bowels from the power of that hit. Naruto dropped to his knees in pain, dropping his sword and holding onto his stomach. He could do nothing as Kazuya backed up and held his broadsword as if it was a baseball bat. Kazuya said "Hey Demon Spawn, how about a little game of Yakyuu(baseball)? HOME RUN!"

Kazuya swung his broadsword, and only his boasting allowed Naruto to drop to the ground and evade the hit. Naruto turned to his back to see Miroku in the air with his leg extended, as if he was trying to drop it on Naruto's head. Acting on instinct, Naruto held his hand out and shot a ki blast, causing it to impact against Miroku's foot. As Miroku landed, he started jumping on one foot. Naruto rolled on the ground, away from the attempted child killer. Naruto hopped to his feet, only to have to duck a slash from Kazuya's sword. Naruto hit Kazuya with a palm thrust to the chest, and unleashed a gathering of ki at the last moment, sending him flying away on a collision course with the opposite wall. This gave Naruto a rare moment to look around. He saw that Hinata had a few scrapes, but she seemed to be holding her own. From somewhere, Rodorigo had found a naginata and seemed to swing it at Hinata whenever the opportunity seemed to present itself.

Naruto turned away, having faith that Hinata could hold her own. As he faced his own opponents, he saw Kazuya pull himself out of the wall. Also, it seemed that Miroku had used a small healing Jutsu on his foot, allowing him to fight again. Naruto looked on the ground near Miroku and spotted his sword. He knew that he was practically defenseless without it, so he planned to retrieve it.

Kazuya got out of the wall and said "Your demon tricks won't work on me, hell-spawn."

Kazuya charged forward, and at the last moment, Naruto did a backflip and kicked Kazuya in his chin. Seeing Miroku come up from behind him, Naruto tackled Kazuya and rolled under Miroku's grip to jump forward and land on the ground, barely out of reach of his sword. Naruto pulled himself forward to grab the sword hilt, but he couldn't reach it before Miroku grabbed his foot. Naruto turned around and shot off two ki blasts that hit Miroku and pushed him back. Then Naruto grabbed his sword and turned around to face Kazuya's charge. Naruto blocked the strike, but it caused him to move back a bit. Instead of waiting for Kazuya to make the attack, Naruto decided to take the initiative and attack. He focused chakra into his arms, and used the added power to push Kazuya's broadsword away. As the broadsword went wide, it left Kazuya open for Naruto to land a shallow cut on his stomach.

Before Naruto could follow up on it, he was blindsided by Miroku, who tackled him into a wall. Naruto turned to Miroku and tried to punch him, but Miroku dodged the punch and sent one of his own to land in Naruto's gut. He punched Naruto in the gut twice more, but as he tried for an uppercut, his luck ran out. Naruto grabbed his fist with one hand to stop the uppercut, then used his other hand to push Miroku back. Naruto took a step forward, jumped, then dropkicked Miroku back. Naruto landed hard on his back and thought _'That used to hurt a HELL of a lot less!'_

Naruto rolled to his feet and charged after Miroku, but in his peripheral vision, saw Kazuya coming for him with a slash towards his ankles. Naruto flipped over the attack, as as he was upside down, facing the wall that was previously behind him, Naruto shot a ki blast at Kazuya's sword with his free hand. The ki blast caused Kazuya's sword to fly out of his grip and skid on the ground. As Naruto landed from the flip, he continued his run for Miroku right into a clothesline by said convict. The clothesline was so powerful, that Naruto did a 450 degree backflip and landed hard on his back. Naruto gasped for air as the clothesline damn near caused his larynx to permanently close. Naruto was writhing on the floor, holding his neck, but he wasn't the only one hurt. Miroku was thinking _'Damnit. That demon's neck was pretty strong. I felt that clothesline all the way down to the bone.'_

Miroku was winding his arm and holding his shoulder, not to look cool, but to get the feeling back in it. As Naruto started to recover from the clothesline, he got back up to his feet and heard a feminine grunt of pain. Looking to the source, he saw Hinata holding her hip and Sakuya unconscious on the floor. Naruto raced over to his love and said "Hina-chan, what's wrong?"

Hinata said "Before I could defeat her, Sakuya stabbed me with that hidden blade on her wrist. She's pretty good. But I'm better."

Naruto looked at Hinata with pride and said "That you are, Hina-chan."

But Naruto's look instantly became serious. He said "Hinata, I need you to listen to me."

The fact that he called her 'Hinata' threw Hinata for a loop. He hadn't called her Hinata unless he was absolutely serious, or unless he was pissed. Seeing that he had her undivided attention, Naruto said "Hinata, I'll give you some cover. You grab Borruja and Sakuya and get the hell out of here. In order to beat these guys, I'll have to use some of my more destructive attacks and I don't want to worry about accidentally killing you or those two."

Hinata aimed a murderous glance at Sakuya and said "Why not kill her?"

Naruto said "Simple. Her bounty is a hell of a lot more if she's brought in alive than dead. And I want to start saving up for the diamond wedding ring that's as perfect as you."

Hinata was flattered by Naruto's talk of the future, but she said "You know, Naruto-kun, I'd be perfectly fine with a cheap cubic zirconium ring."

Naruto chuckled, but got a serious look on his face and said "Hinata, I need you to do this for me."

Hinata sighed. She conceeded and said "Okay Naruto-kun. You know, Naruto-kun, you make it really hard for me to be a bad girl."

Naruto said "Hina-chan, you're perfect just the way you are."

Hinata whined "But I wanna be bad."

Naruto rolled his eyes and said "Just beat it, Hina-chan."

Hinata chuckled and got ready. Naruto turned to see that Miroku and Kazuya seemed to have be almost ready to attack him. Naruto charged energy into his free hand, causing a blood red orb of energy to form there. Narutoshot the orb at the two, yelling "Demon's Rage!"

The attack flew through the air, but both of the men dodged it, just like Naruto wanted them to. The attack crashed against a wall, putting a giant hole in it. Seeing the hole, Hinata grabbed Sakuya and a kicking and screaming Borruja and took off, flying for the office of JuuHachi Town's mayor as quickly as she could.

As she took off, Naruto turned to Kazuya and Miroku. They all started to circle each other, looking for any weaknesses in each other's stances. Kazuya tried to throw Naruto off his game by taunting him. He said "It seemed that your Hyuuga whore left you here alone. Now how will you live without her and that other panda looking bitch to hide behind?"

Naruto said "I don't need Hina-chan or Ten-chan to kick your face in."

Kazuya continued "It sure looked like that the other night. As soon as that blood was dumped on you, you screamed like a little girl and fainted. I found your weakness, demon spawn."

Naruto countered with "It didn't work before. What makes you think it's a weakness?"

Kazuya said "You're right. I don't know it's a weakness. All I saw was you fainting. That's hardly viable evidence. I wasn't able to witness your entire time under the influence of the lamb's blood. Let's change that."

At that point, Kazuya stopped circling. He jumped back a far distance and landed near a wall. He punched the wall, causing a lever to be revealed. He pulled the lever, causing gallons of lamb's blood to dump from the cieling, forming what looked like a ring on the floor. As soon as the smell of that stuff hit Naruto's nostrils, he felt a bit nauseated. He saw that the closer he went to that stuff, the more that feeling persisted. _'I was barely able to survive one bath in that stuff. Without Ten-chan or Hina-chan here, I don't think I can survive a second.'_

Naruto turned to his opponents who entered the circle. Kazuya said "This reminds me of those sumo matches. First one who leaves the ring loses. But for you, losing means death. And I'll be glad to deliver it!"

Kazuya shot forth like a bat out of hell, causing Naruto to barely block the attack. Naruto was pushed back from blocking the attack, getting closer to the ring of blood. Naruto realized Kazuya's plan, and he kneed Kazuya in the gut. Naruto quickly dropped his foot, then planted his knee into Kazuya's face. Naruto then twisted, pivoted, and kicked Kazuya back. Naruto rushed forward and jumped in the air with his sword held back. He was about to try and take Kazuya's head off with one swipe, ransom be damned. Sadly, Miroku had other plans. And those plans included paying Naruto back for that dropkick earlier. Miroku jumped up and dropkicked Naruto, causing him to fly to the side. Naruto fell into a roll and popped back to his feet, but another strike from Kazuya caused him to lose ground again. This time, he saw that he was getting closer and closer to the ring. Naruto tried to do the same tactic from before, but Miroku seemed determined to stop him. Miroku went for a slash to Naruto's gut, but Naruto hopped back on instinct to dodge it, causing him to damn near land in the blood.

Fear started to bubble up in Naruto, but Naruto tried to control it. That control slipped when he leaned back to dodge a swipe from Miroku's dagger, damn near putting him off balance. Kazuya rushed forward to try and play baseball with Naruto's body again, but Naruto hopped back, dodging the attack, but putting himself directly in the blood circle. To Kazuya and Miroku's frustration, Naruto's brain decided to start working and remind Naruto that he can fly. Naruto levitated inches from touching the toxic blood. Naruto circled around the two and landed to continue the fight. But it only took blocking a strike from Kazuya for him to realize the limits of his power. And he just hit them. Naruto couldn't block the strike, and it sent his sword wide, leaving his torso open for attack. Miroku took advantage, stabbing his dagger hilt deep in Naruto's chest. Kazuya also took advantage of it by swing his broadsword like a baseball bat again. He swung and hit Naruto's sword hand with his first strike, severely injuring the hand and sending the sword flying. Kazuya then turned in a full circle, adding the force and speed of the turn in his strike to Naruto's head, which this time, connected.

Naruto went flying from the attack and landed barely an inch from the blood. As the blood started to get to his head, Naruto realized that he couldn't go on like this anymore. His body had started to give out on him. His sword hand was throbbing in pain like nobody's business. Everytime he even twitched his hand, it caused pain to shoot up his spine like nothing he had ever felt before. His head was ringing from the swing by the Babe Ruth knockoff. He could feel blood coming out of his nose, and he could even feel a few of his teeth loose.

_'I...I...What the hell can I do? I can't go on like this. Even though I had never noticed, my demonic side has always been a part of me. It's one of the things that makes me who I am. How can I fight without it? It's like I'm fighting with an arm tied behind my back. I know it's there, I'm so used to using it, but it's just not responding. I feel woozy, dizzy, and I think I'm about to throw up. ...Shit! That blow to the head gave me a contusion. Or concussion. Whichever one it is, I have it. Plus this stab wound to my chest isn't exactly making it any easier for me to breathe. I'm in no condition to fight. I think...I think this might be it.'_

All of a sudden, Naruto heard a voice say "What do you mean this might be it?"

Even though he knew that he had only thought those words, some voice outside of his head had heard them. Turning to the origin of the voice, Naruto saw a man standing there beside him. Kazuya and Miroku seemed to be gloating at Naruto, as if the man wasn't even there. And maybe he wasn't. Maybe it was just a figment of his imagination, or a result of the concussion. But Naruto would always swear that the man who spoke to him at that time was real.

The man was 5'5". He was standing in the blood, but he seemed to ignore it, as if stepping in blood was an everyday occurrence for him. He man had golden eyes and around his eyes were a red outline. His eyes were narrowed in anger and his mouth had a half smirk, half sneer that, when combined with his gaze, seemed as if he was patronizing you and being disgusted by the mere sight of you at the same time. The man was wearing navy blue jeans and a belt of the same color with a golden buckle. He was wearing boots that were a few shades lighter than his pants. The boots came up to mid-shin and seemed to be packed as if they were fashioned out of thick leather. Around the ankle of the boots was a golden band, and the heels and toes of the boots were a dull gold. He was wearing lavender gloves and had a full mane of spiky hair that seemed to add another five inches to his height. His hair dangled down to past his shoulders, but it didn't seem to bother the man. He wore no shirt, but it wasn't needed as, over the man's chiseled torso, grew crimson red hair that seemed to go down his entire arms. Oddly enough, the hair didn't grow on his pectorals, or the top half of his abdomen. But the biggest surprise about this man, was the crimson furred tail jutting out of his tailbone.

The man walked over to Naruto and said "What do you mean, this might be it?"

Naruto had no idea who the man was, but seeing as he was on his way out, he decided to answer the man. Naruto said, in a voice that was barely above a whisper "I...I don't think i can (cough, cough, cough) go on. I can...I can barely breathe. I'm at my limit. I...I think...I'm gonna die here."

The scorn in the man's eyes seemed to intensify and he said "Unacceptable."

Naruto said "What?"

The man said "If you think, I'm going to stand by here, and watch as one of my descendents, one that I gave FAVOR to, dies from fighting some lowly human, then you are sadly mistaken. Get your pathetic self up and FIGHT!"

Naruto said "I...I can't."

The man said "Don't tell me you can't, boy. You think this is bad? You think a little stab wound to the chest and a concussion will get you out of fighting? GROW UP! I've seen a sheltered, whiny little BOY as old as you, raised by some overbearing HARPY, get his arm damn near blasted off and still fight to the death! That boy was descended from a line of THIRD-RATE SAIYAN GRUNTS! Your blood is filled with the royal line of the Saiyans so THE DENIZENS OF HELL WILL RISE UP AND DANCE TO SHOWTUNES BEFORE I ACCEPT YOU GIVING UP!"

Naruto said "But...(cough, cough, cough, cough)But my demonic powers are..."

The man screamed "TO HELL WITH YOUR DEMONIC POWERS! What about your Saiyan powers? What about the powers given to you by decades of bloodshed and death! Me, my son, your father, we have all went through TOO MUCH TO SEE YOU THROW IN THE TOWEL BECAUSE OF A FEW BOO-BOO'S! You are more than just some lowly human! You are Naruto Namikaze, the Prince of All Saiyans! In Heaven and Hell your life is viewed and watched by every Saiyan as inspiration of what they can do! Of what they can be! If you throw in the towel now, you're spitting on everything I went through for you to even exist right now! You're spitting on everything my son Trunks went through! You're spitting on everything EVERY SAIYAN, INCLUDING YOUR FATHER, WENT THROUGH! Now get the hell up, and show these two inbred cretins what happens when you get the moronic idea to FIGHT THE PRINCE OF SAIYANS!"

Naruto would never be able to explain it, and he would never understand it, but at that moment, he felt, powerful. Getting screamed at by this apparition seemed to rejuvenate him. The throbbing in his hand died down until it stopped completely. His head became more clear and the dagger in his chest started to rise up as the wound was healing from the inside out. His breathing started to get better. It was as if he realized something that he had never realized before. People up there, and people down there, were watching over him. They were cheering him on. They were hoping for his success. Someone out there cared for him. And call him crazy, but at that moment, it was as if he could feel the people watching over him.

As he looked up, he could see the transparent outline of a man with lavender hair wearing a similar jacket to him staring down at him. The man was glaring, as if he was anticipating the favorite part of a TV show coming up. Another was a woman with blue hair smiling down at him. A carbon copy of the man beside him showed up, but he had a goatee and was giving him a glare that Naruto imagined a father would give a son who quit at something before trying his best. And the last was a man who looked like an older version of him, black hair and eyes and all, giving him a silent nod. That's when Naruto realized. He could feel them all! He could feel their presence watching him and hoping for his success. He could feel the camaraderie from his fellow Saiyan warriors. He could feel the love from his deceased family. All of them were hoping that he would succeed. And the denizens of Hell would rise up and dance to showtunes before he ever let them down!

What Naruto didn't notice was that his body was giving off a golden glow. The golden glow got the attention of Miroku and Kazuya, and they stared, stunned by what was happening. The glow was so bright it shined through the night like a giant star, getting the notice of everyone fighting below. Even Hinata, flying at breakneck speeds towards JuuHachi Town could see the glow, and she knew what was happening.

As Naruto sat up, he glow started to die down in intensity, and seemed to cover him like an aura when he stood up completely. No limping, no wincing, it was as if Naruto had never been in the fight or stepped in the lambs blood. As Naruto stood up, the man chuckled a little and said "Now you're acting like my kid."

Naruto chuckled at the man's comment and said to the man "I was about to give up. I was about to throw in the towel. The lamb's blood, the pain, the injuries, it was all getting to be too much for me. But you showed me the way. You showed me that I didn't have to give in. You reminded me of who I am. So what if my demonic abilities are gone? I'm still a Saiyan, and the only thing that stops a Saiyan from winning their fight is death. So I'll win this one. For you, for my ancestor Trunks, for my great uncles Goten and Gohan and Goku, for my father Minato, but mostly, I'll win this battle for me."

Naruto held out his hand towards where his sword was, and miraculously, his sword shot from it's position to his hand, stunning Miroku and Kazuya, who were ignorant of Naruto's speech. Naruto took his sword and cut into his palm, deep. Making sure that a scar would be left, Naruto said "On this day, I swear that I will never back down. On this day, I swear that I will never give up. On this day, I will take the way of the Saiyan warrior and live by it until I no longer exist. On this day, at this moment, I was reminded of who I am. And I have you to thank for that, Vegeta."

The man, Vegeta, smiled and said "Okay boy, get on with the soap opera and get started on the ass kickings."

Naruto chuckled and said "As you wish, Vegeta."

Vegeta's apparition vanished, and Naruto was left with Miroku and Kazuya. Kazuya fought through the sense of amazement and slight fear from the aura surrounding Naruto to say "So you're ready for us to deal the final blow to you, huh Demon Spawn?"

Naruto yelled at them "Hit me with your best shot fools, I'll return it a thousand fold!"

Kazuya smirked and charged forward. He swung his sword to try and behead Naruto, but Naruto caught the sword. Not with his hand, not with the side of his arm, but with his index and middle fingers on one side of the blade, and his thumb on the other, preventing the blade from moving. Naruto chuckled and said "My turn."

Naruto seemed to disappear from Kazuya's vision, only to reappear with his foot buried in Kazuya's chest. Kazuya was sent flying back from the kick. Naruto dropped into a fighting stance and said "Thank you Kazuya. Thank you for pushing me to the limit, so I could realize that my _true_ limits are light years beyond that point. Thank you Kazuya, for reminding me just who the hell I am! Now, you and Miroku are going to face something that this world hasn't seen since the death of the Yondaime Hokage. A TRUE SAIYAN WARRIOR!"

Naruto let loose a rage-filled scream and summoned forth every scrap of energy he had in his body. Naruto raised his head to the sky as his power level skyrocketed. With all that power, Naruto easily transformed into a Super Saiyan. While he was a regular Super Saiyan, Naruto felt different. He didn't feel like he did last night when he ascended. This felt like it did before that damn lamb's blood got dumped on him. Somehow, for however brief it would be, Naruto was back to full power.

Kazuya screamed "What kind of demon sorcery is this? This blood should nullify your demonic games!"

Naruto chuckled and said "You ever think that maybe I'm more than just a demon?"

Before they could ponder what he meant by that, Naruto disappeared from their sights. As they looked around for him, he reappeared in between them in a perfect stradle in mid air, kicking both of them at the same time. Miroku recovered first and tried to swing for Naruto. Naruto dodged the punch like it was child's play, and dodged the follow-up ones also. Naruto caught Miroku's last punch and held his arm. Naruto looked into Miroku's eyes and saw Kazuya in mid air trying to kick him in the back of the head. Naruto ducked, causing Kazuya to fly over him and hit Miroku. As they both fell, Naruto disappeared and reappeared in the exact same spot, except this time, he was holding Miroku's dagger. He tossed the dagger to Miroku and said "Take this. Try sticking to something you're good at."

Miroku glared at him and said "I'm gonna enjoy gutting you like a fish and using your colon to hang you."

Naruto said "You'll try. And you'll fail."

Miroku ran at him and tried to slash at him with the dagger, but as the dagger came into contact with his skin, Naruto focused ki to the spot to make a very dense ki shield. The ki shield broke the dagger on contact, causing Miroku to look horrified. Miroku said "That dagger...That dagger was my father's. That was the dagger he used during the Third Shinobi World War you bastard! That dagger was irreplaceable."

Naruto said "Then he shouldn't have done something so stupid as give it to a weakling like you."

Miroku screamed in rage and tried to punch Naruto across the face, but Naruto caught his fist in one hand and crushed it, breaking the bones in Miroku's hands. Naruto, still gripping the hand, threw Miroku into a wall. Naruto looked at Kazuya and said "Next."

Kazuya grabbed his sword and charged Naruto, unleashing a battle cry as he did so. Naruto waited until the last second and swung his sword at Kazuya's as hard as he possibly could. It turns out that 'as hard as he possibly could' was really hard, especially when that swing was augmented by the powers of Super Saiyan. The swing tore through Kazuya's blade like a hot knife through butter, leaving his sword missing the top half of it. Naruto cut Kazuya twice after that, both of which left deep gashes on his torso. Naruto then jumped up and drove his knee into Kazuya's chest, easily breaking a rib. As he landed, Naruto decided to send Kazuya to the realm of Morpheus by backhanding him across the face.

Now that both of them were knocked out, Naruto looked at his hand. The wound he carved into it had already healed over, leaving the scar that Naruto wanted there. Now he would always have a reminder of one of the weakest points in his life. And one of the strongest. Naruto closed his eyes and said "Thank you for watching over me, my family. I promise that I'll make you proud of me."

Naruto grabbed both Miroku and Kazuya and took off into the air. While he was flying, he could've sworn that he heard something. Almost as if they were one, he heard many voices simultaneously say "We already are."

* * *

After dropping the two fugitives at the Mayor's office, they were easily freed of all suspicion or charges. Hinata seemed to be making nice with Tenten. They didn't have to hide out anymore. Things were starting to look up for Naruto.

Well, almost everything. After he dropped Miroku and Kauzya off, Naruto attempted to go Super Saiyan again. Sadly, his power was back to it's lamb blood weakened state. It seemed that the power boost he got while fighting Miroku and Kazuya was a one time thing. But Naruto wasn't too mad about that. _'I'll just have to kick ass with the power I have now.'_

The next day, Naruto and the rest of his team were standing in front of JuuHachi Town's city hall with the mayor. They were standing on the steps of the hall while the mayor was at the top of them at a podium. He said "For courage above and beyond the call of duty, I personally award these seven ninja here, along with their one missing member, with JuuHachi Town's Medal of Honor. These medals are a symbol of the gratitude and appreciation that we of JuuHachi Town feel for what you have done for us. You not only captured the leader of the dreaded Privaron gang, you also captured his three accomplices. Even when our city turned against you and labeled you all pariahs, you still continued your job. For that, we can never thank you enough."

After the mayor's speech, each of them lined up. Each were given the JuuHachi Town medal of honor. It was a medal of pure platinum. On the medal was a picture of the JuuHachi Town horizon with the sun cresting over it. On the opposite side, dead center, was the characters for their names. Near the top edge of the medal was the words 'Medal of Honor.' Naruto accepted the medal and stepped in line with his comrades, appreciative of the gratitude he was receiving.

After the awards ceremony, he and the rest of the group all took off for Konoha, with the bound and unconscious prison escapees in tow. While they were moving, Naruto was tapped by Hinata. "Hina-chan?"

Hinata said "Naru-kun, we have to talk about something."

After excusing themselves, both Hinata and Naruto flew into the sky so their conversation wouldn't be overheard. Naruto said "What's this about, Hina-chan?"

Hinata said "I've been thinking about the Tenten situation. And I've made a decision about it."

Naruto groaned and said "Hina-chan, I thought we put this behind us. We just made up not even a week ago."

Hinata said "I know. But I've been thinking, and I realized that I can't hate Tenten for falling for the exact same thing that I did. I know you love me, and I know you always will. But that doesn't mean that there isn't room in your heart for others."

Hinata's speech threw Naruto for a loop. He said "Hina-chan, just what are you saying?"

Hinata said "Naru-kun, if Tenten is okay with it, I'll have no problems with you dating both of us at the same time."

Naruto's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates as he said "You have to be kidding. You'd seriously be okay with that?"

At Hinata's nod, Naruto said "But what about the long term decisions, like marriage? I can't marry two women. There's no way that's legal."

Hinata chuckled and said "I checked Naru-kun. Nowhere in the lawbook does it say that someone can't marry more than one person. It's something that the lawmakers didn't seem to think should've been made into law."

Naruto said "So you're seriously okay with me dating other women?"

Hinata said "As long as I say they're okay, and as long as you still love me at the end of the day, yes."

Naruto was so shell-shocked at the declaration that he just stood there with his mouth hanging open. Hinata giggled and thought _'I think I might've broken him.'_

Hinata took Naruto by the hand and dragged him back down to the group. As they reached the rest of the group, they continued their travels to Konoha, with Naruto not speaking a word. After a few hours, the group stopped for the night. Seeing Naruto's shocked expression, Neji leaned over to Hinata and said "You told him you were okay with him dating Tenten, didn't you?"

Hinata narrowed her eyes in confusion at Neji and said "Do you have ESP or something?"

Neji just chuckled and went to Hinata's bag. He opened her bag and went through it until he found her copy of the Konoha Lawbook. While it wasn't exactly required, Hinata had been studying up on law in her free time. She was the heiress to the Hyuuga Clan after all. Knowing where her jurisdiction started would be helpful. Neji said "Can I borrow this for a moment?"

Hinata nodded and Neji went over to his teammate who was checking her weapons inventory and stealing glances at Naruto. As Neji approached, he tossed the book to her. He said "Look up what I told you before. Hinata's okay with it if you are."

Neji then turned around and left, causing Tenten to wonder _'What the hell did he mean by that?'_

As he memory dug up what he was talking about, Tenten flipped to the marital section of the book and started reading it. As she was reading it, she saw a bunch of things about prenuptual agreements, civil unions, and the ownership of property. As she got done reading about it, she thought _'What the hell did Neji mean by reading it? I didn't see a single thing about how I can be with Naruto while he's with-'_

And that's when it hit her like a ton of bricks. Tenten flipped back and read through the entire thing, twice, and thought _'There's nothing in here about polygamy. There's not a law against it? Wow, I thought there would be.'_

Tenten stood up and walked over to where Hinata and Naruto were sitting. As she approached them, Hinata saw her and had a knowing smirk on her face. She said "Did you realize what Neji has been pushing us to see for the last week?"

Tenten lightly chuckled and said "Yeah. That whole mysterious and knowing shtick he has going for him can really get annoying."

Hinata snorted and "You're telling me. You don't have to live with him."

Tenten said "I do NOT envy you."

Both girls had a laugh over that. But then Tenten got serious and said to Hinata "What do you think about this?"

Hinata shrugged and said "I'm okay with it if you are."

Tenten said "Really? You're not mad or anything?"

Hinata shook her head and grabbed Naruto's hand. She said "Naru-kun here is an amazing man, and the love of my life. I can't exactly fault you for loving him for the exact same reasons I do. I know there's enough room in his heart for the both of us."

Tenten turned to Naruto and said "Naru-kun?"

Naruto responded to her call and said "Ten-chan?"

Tenten said "Will you be my boyfriend?"

Naruto snapped out of his shock and saw the slight fear in Tenten's eyes. He grabbed her hand, looked her right in the eyes, and said "I'd love to."

Tenten let loose a breath she didn't realize she was holding. She was scared that he would say 'No' for a minute. She jumped into Naruto's embrace and hugged him. Naruto said "So we're officially a couple now."

Tenten pulled back from the hug to look Naruto in the eye and said "No, we're not."

Naruto got a puzzled look on his face and said "We're not?"

Tenten smiled and said "Nope. We still have to do this."

Tenten grabbed the back of Naruto's head and pulled him in for a searing lip-lock. At first, Naruto was shocked, but then he leaned in and started to return the kiss. Seeing them, Hinata could only feel joy in her heart. They both started to moan a bit from the feeling of their wrestling tongues, and Tenten ended the kiss before she did something she wouldn't be able to take back. She sighed and said "I've been wanting to do that for two months now."

Naruto said "Ditto" and hugged her. Hinata took a step forward, and joined in their hug. As they hugged each other, Naruto realized that there was much about him that Tenten didn't know. Hell, there was some stuff he hadn't had the chance to tell Hinata because of their fight. Naruto took both of the girls to his tent, and in there, he told them of all the things in his life that they didn't know about. The experiences shocked the girls, but their opinion of Naruto hadn't changed at all from his tales. Tenten's opinion of him actually increased a great deal. As they spent the night cuddling, Naruto went to sleep, thinking _'It's not so bad being me.'_

As Naruto went to sleep, he didn't feel two sets of eyes on him, watching him like a predator watches their prey. In the beings minds, only one thought was passing by. _'So, this is where the heir has been all this time? Who would've thought he'd be hiding in the Human World of all things?'_

* * *

(End)

Finally, this chapter is complete. I got to show Vegeta, something that I've been wanting to do since I wrote him in the story. Also, I got Tenten into the harem, which means I can finally work on the other girls.

But now that Naruto is weakened, he's about to have a lot more difficulty doing things. What's this feeling he's been having for a while that he's being watched? Why is every bone in his body telling him to be on edge, even when he's resting with his girlfriends? It seems that the fact that he's the uncrowned prince of the Demon World is about to come back and bite him in the ass. Don't miss the next chapter where all these questions will (probably) be answered!


End file.
